THIGRITIC 
INTHEjDRIENT 

GEORGE fiSMLINFlTCB 




THE CRITIC 
IN THE ORIENT 




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THE CRITIC 
IN THE ORIENT 



GEORGE HAMLIN FITCH 

AUTHOR OF 

"COMFORT FOUND IN GOOD OLD BOOKS" 

"MODERN ENGLISH BOOKS OF POWER" 

"THE CRITIC IN THE OCCIDENT" 



East is East and West is West and 

ne'ver the twain shall meet. 

Till Earth and Sky stand presently 

at God'' s great Judgment Seat. 

— Kipling 



ILLUSTRATED 

FROM 
PHOTOGRAPHS 



PAUL ELDER AND COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS • SAN FRANCISCO 



Copyright, igi3 
by Paul Elder and Company 



F<bn 



The chapters of this 

book appeared originally in the 

Sunday supplement of the San Francisco Chronicle. 

The privilege of reproducing them 

here is due to the courtesy of 

M. H. de Young, Esq. 

The author is greatly 

indebted to Isaac O. Upham, Esq., 

for the fine photographs which illustrate the 

section on Japan and for several 

photographs of Indian 

scenes 



©CI.A34G93G 



TO MY FELLOW TOURISTS 
ON THE MINNESOTA, WHOSE 

COMPANIONSHIP MADE MANY 

TEDIOUS JOURNEYS BY LAND 

AND SEA ENJOYABLE 



L 



Contents 

Pagb 

Introduction ix 

The Best Results of Travel in the Orient . . . xiii 

Japan, The Picture Country of the Orient ... i 

First Impressions of Japan and the Life of the Japanese— 
The Japanese Capital and its Parks and Temples— The 
Most Famous City of Temples in all Japan— In Kyoto, 
The Ancient Capital of Japan— Kobe, Osaka, The Inland 
Sea and Nagasaki— Development of the Japanese Sense of 
Beauty— Conclusions on Japanese Life and Charadler— 
Will the Japanese Retain Their Good Traits? 

Manila, Transformed by the Americans .... 49 
First Impressions of Manila and Its Pifturesque People- 
American Work in the Philippine Islands— Scenes in the 
City of Manila and Suburbs. 

Hongkong, Canton, Singapore and Rangoon ... 63 
Hongkong, the Greatest British Port in the Orient— A 
Visit to Canton in Days of Wild Panic— Singapore, the 
Meeting Place of Many Races— Strange Night Scenes in 
the City of Singapore— Charafteristic Sights in Burma's 
Largest City. 

India, The Land of Temples, Palaces and Monuments . 93 
Calcutta, the Most Beautiful of Oriental Cities— Bathing, 
and Burning the Dead at Benares— Lucknow and Cawn- 
pore. Cities of the Mutiny— The Taj Mahal, the World's 
Loveliest Building— Delhi and Its Ancient Mohammedan 
Ruins— Scenes in Bombay When the King Arrived— Re- 
ligion and Customs of the Bombay Parsees. 

Egypt, The Home of Hieroglyphs, Tombs and Mummies . 135 
Pifturesque Oriental Life as Seen in Cairo —Among the 
Ruins of Luxor and Karnak— Tombs of The Kings at 
Ancient Thebes— Sailing Down the Nile on a Small 
Steamer— Before the Pyramids and the Sphinx. 

Hints for Travelers 167 

Some Suggestions That May Save the Tourist Time and 
Money. 

Bibliography . . 171 

Books Which Help One to Understand the Orient and 
Its People. 

Index . 175 



[V] 



Illustrations 



The Taj Mahal at Agra . . , . Frontispiece page 

The Yomei-mori Gate, leyasu Temple, Nikko . Facing 1 4 

The Daibutsu or Great Bronze Buddha at Hyogo . . 30^ 

Imperial Gate, Fort Santiago, Manila . . . . 56" 

The City of Boats at Canton 74'^ 

Hindoos Bathing in the Ganges at Benares . . . 100- 

Front View of the Taj Mahal, Agra 114^ 

One of the Main Avenues of Bombay . . . . 126 

The Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak 146' 

Plates 

Japan Following page 48 Plate 

Street Scene, Asakusa Park, Tokyo i'^ 

Entrance Hall of Modern Home of a Tokyo Millionaire ii-- 

BronzeLanternsandSacredFountain,Shiba Temple, Tokyo iii- 

Sacred Red Bridge at Nikko ...... rv 

Avenue of Cryptomeria to Futaaru Temple, Nikko . v '-^ 

Avenue of Cryptomeria Trees, near Nikko ... vi^ 

Great Bronze Torii, Nikko vii 1^ 

Stone Lanterns, Kasuga Temple Park, Nara . . viii f 

Religious Procession, Kyoto ix"' 

Scene on Canal, Kyoto x^'' 

Street Scene in Kobe xi u- 

A Group of Japanese Schoolboys xii ; 

Japanese Peasant Group by the Roadside .... xiii 

Scene in Large Private Garden, Kyoto .... xiv -- 

Iris Bed at Horikiri, near Tokyo xv i-- 

Private Garden, Kamakura xvi 

Manila Following page 62 

A Glimpse of the Escolta, Manila xviv 

Old Church and Bridge at Pasig xviii 

The Binondo Canal at Manila xix 

On the Malecon Drive, Manila xx; 

View on a Manila Canal xxi 

A Filipino Peasant Girl on the Way to Market . . xxii 

The Carabao Cart in the Philippines xxiii 

The Nipa Hut of the Filipino xxiv 



[Vllj 



34 



Plates 

Hongkong, Canton, Singapore, Rangoon Followingpagegz 

Queen's Road in Hongkong 

Flower Market in a Hongkong Street 

Coolies Carrying Burdens at Hongkong 

The Spacious Foreign Bund at Hongkong. 

Chinese Junks in Hongkong Harbor 

View of the Water-front at Canton 

The New Chinese Bund at Canton 

A Confucian Festival at Singapore 

A Main Street in the Native Quarter of Singapore 

The Y. M. C. A. Building at Singapore 

The Great Shwe Dagon Pagoda at Rangoon 

Entrance to the Shwe Dagon Pagoda 

Burmese Worshipping in the Pagoda at Rangoon 

Riverside Scene at Rangoon 

Trained Elephant Piling Teak at Rangoon 

Palm Avenue, Royal Lakes, Rangoon 
India Following page 

One of the Main Gates to Government House, Calcutta 

A Street Scene in Calcutta 

The Great Burning Ghat at Benares 

View of the Bathing Ghats at Benares 

A Holy Man of Benares Under His Umbrella 

The Residency at Lucknow 

Tomb of Itmad-ul-Daulet at Agra . 

The Mutiny Memorial at Cawnpore . 

Detail of Carving in the Jasmine Tower, Agra 

The Jasmine Tower in Agra Fort 

Snap-shot of a Jain Family at Agra . 

The Fort at Agra Which Encloses Many Palaces 

Kutab Minar, the Arch and the Iron Pillar, near Delhi 

Shah Jehan's Heaven on Earth, Delhi 

Street View in Delhi 

A Parsce Tower of Silence at Bombay 
Egypt Following page 

A Typical Street in Old Cairo .... 

An Arab Cafe in One of Cairo's Streets 

Women Water Carriers in Turkish Costume 

The Rameseon at Karnak 

The Avenue of Sphinxes at Karnak 

An Arab Village on the Nile ..... 

The Colossi of Memnon, near Thebes 

The Great Sphinx, Showing the Temple Underneath 



64 



Pagb 

XXV 

XXVI 

XXVII ' 

XXVIII 

XXIX 

XXX 

XXXI i 

XXXII 

XXXIII' 

XXXIV 

XXXV. 

XXXVI 

XXXVII 

XXXVIII 

XXXIX 

XL 

XLI 

XLII 

XLIII 

XLIV 

XLV 

XLVI 

XLVII 

XL VIII 

XLIX 

L 

LI. 

LII 

LIII 

LIV 

LV 

LVI : 

LVII ' 

LVIII 

LIX 

LX> 

LZI' 

Lxm 

LXIII : 
LXIV 



[Vlll] 



IntroduEtion 

7^HIS book of impressions of the Far East is called 
^^I'he Critic in the Orient " because the writer for 
over thirty years has been a professional critic of new 
books— one trained to get at the best in all literary works 
and reveal it to the reader. This critical work— a com- 
bination of rapid reading and equally rapid written 
estimate of new publications— would have been deadly, 
save for a love of books, so deep and enduring that it 
has turned drudgery into pastime and an enthusiasm for 
discovering good things in every new book which no 
amount of literary trash was ever able to smother. 

After years of such strenuous critical work, the 
mind becomes molded in a certain cast. It is as im- 
possible for me to put aside the habit of the literary 
critic as it would be for a hunter who had spent his 
whole life in the woods to be content in a great city. So 
when I started out on this trip around the world the 
critical apparatus which I had used in getting at the 
heart of books was applied to the people and the places 
along this great girdle about the globe. 

Much of the benefit of foreign travel depends upon 
the reading that one has done. For years my eager curi- 
osity about places had led me to read everything printed 
about the Orient and the South Seas. Add to this the 
stories which were brought into a newspaper office by 
globe trotters and adventurers, and you have an equip- 
ment which made me at times seem to be merely revis- 
ing impressions made on an earlier journey. When you 
talk with a man who has spent ten or twenty years in 
Japan or China or the Straits Settlements, you cannot 
fail to get something of the color of life in those strange 
lands, especially if you have the newspaper training 

[IX] 



Introdudiion 

which impels you to ask questions and to drag out of 
your informant everything of human interest that the 
reader will care to know. 

'This newspaper instinct, which is developed by train- 
ing hut which one must possess in large measure before 
he can be successful in journalism, seizes upon everything 
and transmutes it into''^ copy" for the printer. I'o have 
taken this journey without setting down every day my 
impressions of places and people would have been a tire- 
some experience. What seemed labor to others who had 
not had my special training was as the breath in my 
nostrils. Even in the debilitating heat of the tropics it 
was always a pastime, never a task, to put into words 
my ideas of the historic places which I knew so well 
from years of reading and which I had just seen. And 
the richer the background of history, the greater was 
my enjoyment in painting with words full of color a pic- 
ture of my impressions, for the benefit of those who were 
not able to share my pleasure in the actual sight of these 
famous places of the Far East. 

From the mass of newspaper letters written while 
every impression was sharp and clear, I have sele^ed 
what seemed to me most significant and illustrative. It 
is only when the traveler looks back over a journey that 
he gets the true per speSlive. 'Then only is he able to see 
what is of general and permanent interest. Most of the 
vexations of travel I have eliminated, as these lose their 
force once they have gone over into yesterday. What 
remains is the beauty of scenery, the grandeur of archi- 
tecture, the spiritual quality of famous paintings and 
statues, the appealing traits of various peoples. 



[A 



The Best 

Results of Travel in 

the Orient 



The Best 

Results of Travel in 

the Orient 



rHIS volume includes impressions of the first half 
of a trip around the world. I'he remainder of the 
journey will fill a companion volume ^ which will com- 
prise two chapters devoted to New Tork and the effeSi 
it produced on me after seeing the great cities of the 
world. As I have said in the preface^ these are neces- 
sarily first impressions^ jotted down when fresh and 
clear; but it is doubtful whether a month spent in any of 
these places would have forced a revision of these first 
glimpses^ set in the mordant of curiosity and enthusiasm. 
When the mind is saturated with the literature of a 
place, it is quick to seize on what appeals to the imagi- 
nation, and this appeal is the one which must be con- 
sidered in every case where there is an historical or le- 
gendary background to give salient relief to palace or tem- 
ple, statue or painting. Without this background the no- 
blest work seems dull and lifeless. With it the palace 
stamps itself upon the imagination, the temple stirs the 
emotions, the statue speaks, the painting has a direSi 
spiritual message. 

Certain parts of the Orient are not rich in this im- 
aginative material which appeals to one fond of history 
or art; but this defeat is compensated for by an extraor- 
dinary pi5furesqueness of life and a wonderful luxuriance 
of nature. The Oriental trip also makes less demand on 
one*s reading than even a hasty journey through Europe. 
There are few piSfures, few statues. Only India and 

[xiii] 



T^he Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

Egypt appeal to the sense of the historical. "Japan 
stands alone ^ alien to all our ways of life and thought ^ 
but so intensely artistic , so saturated with the intellec- 
tual spirit that it seems to belong to another world than 
this material, commercial existence that stamps all 
European and American life. 'The new China furnishes 
an attractive field of study, but unfortunately when I 
visited the country it was in the throes of revolution and 
travel was dangerous anywhere outside the great treaty 
ports. 

One of the best results of foreign travel is that it 
makes one revise his estimate of alien races. When 
I started out it was with a strong prejudice against the 
Japanese, probably due to my observation of some rather 
unlovely specimens whom I had encountered in San 
Francisco. A short stay in Japan served to give me a 
new point of view in regard to both the people and the 
country of the Mikado. It was impossible to escape 
from the fa5t that here is a race which places loyalty to 
country and personal honor higher than life, and this 
sentiment was not confined to the educated and wealthy 
classes but was general throughout the nation. Here 
also is a people so devoted to the culture of beauty that 
they travel hundreds of miles to see the annual chrysan- 
themum and other flower festivals. And here is a people 
so devoted to art for arf s sake that even the poor and 
uneducated have little gardens in their back yards and 
houses which reveal a refined taste in architecture and 
decoration. The poorest artisans are genuine artists and 
their work shows a beauty and a finish only to be found 
in the work of the highest designers in our country. 

In one chapter of the seSlion on Japan, I have dwelt 
on the ingenious theory that it is their devotion to the 
garden that has kept the Japanese from being spoiled by 
the great strides they have made in the last twenty 
years in commerce and conquest. To take foremost place 

[xiv] 



The Best Results ofTravelin the Orient 
among the -powers of the world without any preliminary 
struggle is an achievement which well might turn the 
heads of any people; yet this exploit has simply confirmed 
the Japanese in the opinion that their national training 
has resulted in this success that other nations have 
won only by the expenditure of years of labor and study. 
When you see the reverence which every one in Japan 
shows at the tombs of the Forty-seven Ronins, you 
feel that here is a spiritual force which is lacking in 
every European country; here is something, whether you 
call it loyalty or patriotism or fanaticism, which makes 
even the women and children of Japan eager to sacrifice 
all that they hold most dear on the altar of their country. 
No less striking than their loyalty is the courtesy of 
the Japanese which makes travel in their country a 
pleasure. Even the poor and ignorant country people 
show in their mutual relations a politeness that would do 
credit to the most civilized race, while all exhibit 
toward foreigners a courtesy and consideration that is 
often repaid by boorishness and insult on the part of 
tourists and foreign residents of Japan. Another feature 
of Japanese life that cannot fail to impress the stranger 
is the small weight that is given to wealth. In their 
relations with foreigners the governing class and the 
wealthy people are sticklers for all the conventional 
forms; but among themselves the simplicity of their social 
life is very attractive. Elaborate functions are unknown 
and changes of costume, which make womeri s dress so 
large an item of family expense in any European country, 
are unnecessary. Some of the rich Japanese are now lav- 
ishing money on their homes, which are partly modeled 
on European plans; but in the main the residences, even of 
rich people, are very simple and unpretentious. These 
homes are filled with priceless porcelains, jades, paintings 
and prints, but there is no display merely for the sake of 
exhibiting art treasures, 

[XV] 



The Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

In Manila the American tourist has a good oppor- 
tunity to contrast what has been done by his countrymen 
with what the British have accomplished in ports like 
Hongkong and Singapore. Doubtless the English plan 
will show the larger financial returns^ but it is carried 
out with a selfish disregard of the interests of the na- 
tives which stirs the gorge of an American. The 
Englishman believes in keeping a wide gulf between the 
dominant and the humble classes. He does not believe 
in educating the native to think that he can rise from 
the class in which he is born. I'he American scheme 
in the Philippines has been to encourage the development 
of character and efficiency^ wherever found; and the re- 
sult is that many public positions are open to men who 
were head-hunting savages ten years ago. Above all 
other things in the Philippines we have proved, as we 
have shown at Panama, that a tropical climate need not 
be an unhealthful one. We have banished from Man- 
ila cholera, yellow fever and bubonic plague — three 
pests that once made it dreaded in the Orient. I'his, 
with an ample water supply, is an achievement worthy 
of pride, when one contrasts it with the unsanitary 
sewerage system of Hongkong and Singapore. 

"The small part of the great Chinese Empire which 
I was able to see gave me a vivid impression of the ac- 
tivity and enthusiasm of the people in spreading the new 
Republican doctrines. I'he way old things have been put 
aside and the new customs adopted seems almost like a 
miracle. Fancy a whole people discarding their time- 
honored methods of examination for the civil service, along 
with their queues, their caps and their shoes. All the 
authorities have predicted that China would be centur- 
ies in showing the same changes which the Japanese have 
made in a single generation; but recent events go far to 
prove that Japan will be outstripped in the race for prog- 
ress by its slow-going neighbor. What profoundly im- 
[xvi] 



The Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

presses any visitor to China is the stamina and the work- 
ing capacity of the common people. I'ireless laborers these 
Chinese are, whether they work for themselves or the 
European. What they will be able to accomplish with 
labor-saving machinery no one can predict. Certainly 
should they accept modern methods of work, with the 
same enthusiasm that they have adopted new methods 
of government, the markets of the world will be upset 
by the product of these four hundred million. China 
is to-day in transformation— flu^uant, far-reaching, 
limited only by the capacity of a singularly excitable 
people to absorb new ideas. 

In India great is the contrast to China and Japan. 
Here is an old civilization, founded on caste: here are 
many peoples but all joined to the worship of a system 
that says the son must follow in the footsteps of the fa- 
ther; that one cannot break bread with a stranger of an- 
other caste lest he and his tribe be defiled. Nothing more 
hideous was ever conceived than this Indian caste system, 
yet it has held its own against the force of foreign learn- 
ing and probably will continue to fetter the development 
of the natives of India for centuries to come. Some simple 
reforms the English have secured, like the abolition of 
suttee and the improved condition of the child widows; 
hut their influence on the great mass of the people has 
been pitiably small. India bears the same relation to 
the Orient that Italy does to Europe. It is the home of 
temples, palaces and monuments; it is the land of beauti- 
ful art work in many materials. Most of its cities have 
a splendid historical past that is seen in richly orna- 
mented temples and shrines, in the tombs of its illustri- 
ous dead and in palaces that surpass in beauty of deco- 
ration anything which Europe can boast. 

In considering India it must always be borne in 
mind that here was the original seat of the Aryan civ- 
ilization and thaty though the Hindoo is as dark as 

[xvii] 



The Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

many of the American negroes y he is of Aryan stock like 
ourselves. In comparison with the men who carried 
Aryan civilization throughout the world, the Hindoo of 
to-day is as far removed as is the modern Greek from 
the Greek of the time of Pericles and Phidias. Yet he 
shows all the signs of race in clear-cut features and in 
small hands and feet, 

li'he journey throughout India is one which calls for 
some philosophy y as the train arrangements are never 
good and, unless one has the luck to secure a competent 
guide, he will be annoyed by the excessive greed of every 
one with whom he comes in contact. But aside from such 
troubles the trip is one which richly repays the traveler. 
If one has time it is admirable to go off the beaten 
track to some of the minor places which have fine his- 
torical remains; but a good idea of India may be ob- 
tained by taking the regular route from Calcutta to Bom- 
bay, by way of Delhi. 

In Benares the tourist first meets the swarms of beg- 
gars that make life a burden. Aged men,with loathsome 
sores, stand whining at corners beseeching the favor of 
a two-anna piece; blind men, led by small, skinny chil- 
dren, set up a mournful wail and then curse you fluently 
when you pass them by, and scores of children rise up 
out of hovels at the roadside and pursue your carriage 
with shrill screams. All are filthy, clamorous, greedy, 
inexpressibly offensive. If you are soft hearted and give 
to one, then your day is made hideous by a swarm of 
mendicants, tireless in pursuit and only kept from actual 
invasion of the carriage by fear of the driver s whip. 

I^ he feature which makes travel on Indian railways 
a weariness of the flesh is the roughness of the cars. 
Each truck on the passenger cars is provided with two 
large wheels, exactly like those on freight cars, and these 
wheels have wooden felloes and spokes. With poor 
springs the result is that though the road-bed is perfeEi 

[xviii] 



The Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

the cars are as rough as our freight cars. When the 
speed is over twenty-Jive miles an hour or the road is 
crooked^ the motion of the cars is well nigh intolerable. 
Ordinarily the motion is so great that reading is difficult 
and writing out of the question. At night the jar of the 
car is so severe that one must he very tired or very 
•phlegmatic to get any refreshing sleep. When one trav- 
els all day and all night at a stretch— as in the journey 
from Jeypore to Bombay— the fatigue is out of all pro- 
portion to the distance covered. InfaSl^ Americans have 
been spoiled by the comforts of Pullman sleeping-cars^ in 
which foreign critics find so many flaws. Probably the 
chief annoyance to our party of Americans^ aside from 
the jar of the cars, was the dust and soot which poured 
in day and night. 'The engines burn soft coal and the 
dust on the road-beds is excessive. A system of double 
windows and well-fitting screens would remove this nui- 
sance, but apparently the British in India think dust 
and grime necessary features of railway travel, for no 
effort is made to eliminate them. 

No Oriental trip would be complete without a visit 
to Egypt, and especially a ride on the Nile. It is more 
difficult to make anyone realize the charm of Egypt than 
of any other country of the Orient. The people are dirty, 
ignorant, brutish: their faces contain no appeal because 
they are the faces of Millet' s^^'T he Man With the Hoe.'' 
Centuries of subjection have killed the pride which still 
lingers in the face and bearing of the poorest Arab; the 
Egyptian peasant does not wear the collar of Gurth, but 
he is a slave of the soil whose day of freedom is afar off. 
Tet these degenerate people are seen against a background 
of the most imposing ruins in the world. Luxor and 
Karnak and the tombs of the kings near old Thebes con- 
tain enough remains of the splendor of ancient Egyptian 
life to permit study for years. The mind is appalled by 
this mass of temples, monuments, obelisks and colossal 

[xix] 



T^he Best Results of Travel in the Orient 

statues. It is difficult to realize that the same people who^ 
are seen toiling in the fields to-day raised these huge mon- 
uments to perpetuate the names of their rulers. A cli- 
mate as dry as that of the Colorado desert has preserved 
these remains^ so that in the rock tombs one may gaze 
upon brightly painted hieroglyphs of the time of Moses 
that look as though they were carved yesterday. 

In this Oriental tour the stamp of strange religions 
is over all the lands. The temple is the keynote of each 
race. And religion with the Oriental is not a matter 
of one day s worship in seven: it is a vital^ daily function 
into which he puts all the dreamy mysticism of his race. 
The first sight of several Mohammedans bowed in the 
dust by the roadside^with their faces set toward Mecca^ 
gives one a strange thrill^ but this speSlacle soon loses 
its novelty. Everywhere in the Far East religion is a 
matter of form and ceremony: it includes regular visits 
to the temple and regular prayers and offerings to the 
deities enshrined in these houses of worship. But it also 
includes a daily ritual that must be observed at certain 
fixed hours J even though the believer may be in the midst 
of the crowded market place. The spiritual isolation of 
an Oriental at his prayers in any big city of the Far 
East is the most significant feature of this life— so alien 
to all the mental, moral, and religious training of the 
Occident. Vain is it for one of Anglo-Saxon strain to 
attempt to bridge this abyss that lies between his mind 
and that of the Burman or the Par see. Each lives in a 
spiritual world of his own and each would be homesick 
for heaven were he transferred to the ideal paradise of 
the other. So the traveler in the Orient should give 
heed to the temples, for in them is voiced the spiritual 
aspirations of the people, who have little of comfort or 
hope to cheer them in this world. 



[XX] 



JAPAN, THE 

PICTURE COUNTRY OF 

THE ORIENT 



First Impressions 

OF Japan and The Life of 

The Japanese 



YOKOHAMA looks Very beautiful to the traveler 
who has spent over two weeks on the long sea 
voyage from Seattle; but it has little to com- 
mend it to the tourist, for most of its native traits 
have been Europeanized. It is noteworthy, however, 
as the best place except Hongkong for the traveler 
to purchase an oriental outfit and it is probably the 
cheapest place in the world for trunks and bags and 
all leather goods. Its bund, or water-front, is spa- 
cious and its leading hotels are very comfortable. 

Of Japan and the Japanese, all that can be given 
are a few general impressions of the result of two 
weeks of constant travel over the empire and of talks 
with many people. 

Of the country itself, the prevailing impression 
of the tourist, who crosses it on the railroad or who 
takes rides through the paddy fields in a rickshaw, 
is of a perennial greenness. Instead of the tawny 
yellow of California in Odober, one sees here miles 
on miles of rice fields, some of vivid green, others of 
green turning to gold. The foothills of the moun- 
tains remind one of the foothills of the Sierra Ne- 
vada, as they all bear evidences of the rounding 
and smoothing of glacial adion. 

At a distance the rice fields look like grain fields, 
but seen near at hand they are found to be great 
swamps of water, with row on row of rice, the dead 



[3] 



The Critic in the Orient 
furrows either serving as ditches or as raised patht 
across the fields. Every bit of hillside is terraced and 
planted to rice or vegetables or fruit. 

Often these little, terraced fields, which look like 
the natural mesa of southern California, will not be 
over fifty feet long by ten or fifteen feet wide. Be- 
tween the rows of fruit trees are vegetables or corn 
or sorghum. The farmers live in little villages and 
apparently go home every night after tilling their 
fields. There are none of the scattered farmhouses, 
with trees around them, which are so characteristic 
a feature of any American rural scene. 

The towns as well as the cities show a uniform- 
ity of architedhire, as most of the shops are one story 
or a story and one-half, while the residences seem to 
be built on a uniform plan, with great variety in gate- 
ways and decoration of grounds. Most of the roofs 
are made of a black clay, corrugated so that it looks 
like the Spanish-American tile, and many of the walls 
that surround residences and temples are of adobe, 
with a tiled covering, precisely as one sees to-day the 
remains of adobe walls in old Spanish-Californian 
towns. 

The general impression of any Japanese city when 
seen from a height is that of a great expanse of low 
buildings with a liberal sprinkling of trees and a few 
pagodas or roofs of Buddhist temples. 

The strongest impression that the unprejudiced 
observer receives in Japan is of the small value set 
upon labor as well as upon time by the great mass of 
the people. In Yokohama and in Kobe, which show 
the most signs of foreign influence, the same traits 
prevail. 

It is one of the astonishing spedacles of the world, 
this accomplishment of the business of a great nation 
by man power alone. Only in one city, Osaka, the 

[4] 



First Impressions of Japan 

Chicago of Japan, is there any general evidence of 
the adoption of up-to-date methods in manufadur- 
ing. Everywhere one sees all the small industries 
of the country carried on in the same way that they 
were conducted in Palestine in the time of Christ. 

Everywhere men, harnessed to heavy push carts, 
are seen straining to haul loads that are enough for a 
horse. The few horses in the cities are used for heavy 
trucks, in common with bulls, for the Japanese bull 
is a beast of burden and not one of the lords of crea- 
tion as in our own country. 

The bull is harnessed with a short neckyoke and 
a saddle on his back, which bears a close resemblance 
to the riding saddle of the Cossack. Some rope 
traces are hitched to crude, home-made whiffletrees. 
The bull, as well as the horse, is guided by a rope 
line. The carts are remarkably heavy, with wheels 
of great weight, yet many of these carts are pulled 
by two men. 

In the big cities may be seen a few vidorias, or 
other carriages, and an occasional motor car, but 
both these means of conveyance can be used with 
safety only on the broadest avenues. In the narrow 
streets of the native quarter, which seldom exceed 
ten feet in width and which have no sidewalks, the 
jinrikisha is the only carriage. This is a light, two- 
wheeled gig, drawn by one man and frequently on 
the steep grades pushed from the back by a second 
man. The rickshaw man has a bell gong on one 
shaft, which he rings when approaching a sharp turn 
in the street or when he sees several trucks or other 
rickshaws approaching. The bell also serves to warn 
old people or children who may be careless, for the 
rickshaw has the right of way and the pedestrian 
must turn to either side to give it the road. Ameri- 
cans, who are far more considerate of the feelings of 

[5] 



The Critic in the Orient 

the Japanese than other foreigners, frequently may 
be seen walking up the steep grades in such hilly 
cities as Nikko, Nara and Kobe, but long residence 
in Japan is said to make everyone callous of the 
straining and the sweating of the rickshaw man. 

Purposely my itinerary included a number of lit- 
tle towns, which pradically have been uninfluenced 
by foreign customs. In these places may be seen 
the primitive Japanese life, unchanged for hundreds 
of years. Yet everywhere one cannot fail to be im- 
pressed by the tireless industry of the people, and 
by their general good nature and courtesy. 

In any other country in the world, a party of 
Americans with their foreign dress would have pro- 
voked some insulting remarks, some gestures that 
could not be mistaken; but here in rural Japan was 
seen the same perfect courtesy shown in the Euro- 
peanized sed:ions of the big cities. The people, to 
be sure, made no change in their way of life. Mothers 
suckled their infants in front of their little shops, 
and children stood naked and unashamed, lost in 
wonder over the strange spedlacle of the party of 
foreign people that dashed by in rickshaws. 

Naked men, with only a G-string to distinguish 
them from the costume of Adam before the expul- 
sion from Eden, labored at many tasks, and fre- 
quently our little cavalcade swept by the great Gov- 
ernment schools where hundreds of little Japanese 
are being educated to help out the manifest destiny 
of the empire. 

This courtesy and good nature among the poorest 
class of the Japanese people is not confined to their 
treatment of foreigners; it extends to all their daily 
relations with one another. A nearly naked coolie 
pulling a heavy cart begs a light for his cigarette 
with a bow that would do honor to a Chesterfield. 

[6] 



First Impressions of Japan 

A street blockade that in New York or San Fran- 
cisco would not be untangled without much profanity 
and some police interference is cleared here in a 
moment because everyone is willing to yield and to 
recognize that the most heavily burdened has the 
right of way. 

In all my wanderings by day or night in the large 
Japanese cities I never except once saw a policeman 
lift his hand to exercise his authority. This excep- 
tion was in Tokio, where a band of mischievous school- 
boys was following a party of gayly dressed ladies 
in rickshaws and laughing and chattering. The guar- 
dian of the peace admonished them with a few short, 
crisp words, and they scuttled into the nearest alleys. 

The industry of the people, whether in city or 
country, is as amazing as their courtesy. The Japa- 
nese work seven days in the week, and the year is 
broken only by a few festivals that are generally ob- 
served by the complete cessation of labor. In the 
large cities work goes on in most of the shops until 
ten or eleven o'clock at night, and it is resumed at six 
o'clock the next morning. 

The most impressive spedacle during several 
night rides through miles of Tokio streets was the 
number of young lads from twelve to sixteen years of 
age who had fallen asleep at their tasks. With head 
pillowed on arm they slumbered on the hard benches, 
where they had been working since early morning, 
while the older men labored alongside at their tasks. 

From the train one saw the rice farmer and his 
wife and children working in the paddy fields as long 
as they could see. These people do not work with 
the fierce energy of the American mechanic, but 
their workday is from twelve to fourteen hours and, 
considering these long hours, they show great indus- 
try and conscientiousness. 

[7] 



The Critic in the Orient 

In some places women were employed at the 
hardest work, such as coaling ships by hand and 
digging and carrying earth from canals and ditches. 

Scarcely less impressive than the tireless industry 
of the people is the enormous number of children 
that may be seen both in city and country. It was 
impossible to get statistics of births, but any Amer- 
ican traveling through Japan must be struck with 
the fa(5t that this is a land not threatened by race 
suicide. 

Women who looked far beyond the time of 
motherhood were suckling infants, while all the 
young women seemed well provided with children. 
Girls of five or six were playing games with sleeping 
infants strapped to their backs, and even boys were 
impressed into this nursery work. The younger 
children are clothed only in kimonos, so that the 
passer-by witnesses many strange sights of naked 
Japanese cherubs. 

In all quarters of Tokio the children were as 
numerous as in tenement streets of American cities 
on a Sunday afternoon, and in small country towns 
the number of children seemed even greater than in 
the big cities. 

Another feature of Japanese life that made a pro- 
found impression on me was the pilgrimage of school 
children to the various sacred shrines throughout the 
empire. At Nikko and at Nara, two of the great 
seats of Buddhist and Shinto shrines, these child pil- 
grims were conspicuous. They were seen in bands 
of fifty or seventy-five, attended by tutors. The boys 
were dressed in blue or black jackets, white or blue 
trousers and white leggings. Each carried his few 
belongings in a small box or a handkerchief and 
each had an umbrella to proted him from the fre- 
quent showers. 

[8] 



First Impressions of Japan 

The girls had dark red merino skirts, with kim- 
ono waists of some dark stuff. Many were without 
stockings, but all wore straw sandals or those with 
wooden sole and heavy wooden clogs. School chil- 
dren are admitted to temples and shrines at half 
rates and in every place the guides pay special atten- 
tion to these young visitors. 

Pilgrimages of soldiers and others are also very 
common. Whenever a party of one hundred is 
formed it receives the benefit of the half-rate admis- 
sion. No observant tourist can fail to see that in the 
pilgrimages of these school children and these sol- 
diers the authorities of new Japan find the best means 
of stimulating patriotism. Church and State are so 
closely welded that the Mikado is regarded as a 
god. Passionate devotion to country is the great 
ruling power which separates Japan from all other 
modern nations. 

\The number of young men who leave their coun- 
try to escape the three years' conscription is very 
small. The schoolboy in his most impressionable 
years is brought to these sacred shrines; he listens 
to the story of the Forty-seven Ronins and other 
tales of Japanese chivalry; his soul is fired to imi- 
tate their self-sacrificing patriotism. The bloody 
slopes of Port Arthur witnessed the effedt of such 
training as this. 



[9] 



The Japanese 

Capital and Its Parks and 

Temples 



TOKio, the capital of Japan, is a piduresque 
city of enormous extent and the tourist who 
sees it in two or three days must exped: to 
do strenuous work. The city, which adhially covers 
one hundred square miles, is built on the low shore 
of Tokio bay and is interseded by the Sumi river 
and a network of narrow canals. The river and these 
canals are crossed by frequent bridges. At night the 
tourist may mark his approach to one of these canals 
by the evil odors that poison the air. Even in Oc- 
tober the air is sultry in Tokio during the day and 
far into the night, but toward morning a penetrating 
damp wind arises. 

Although Tokio's main streets have been wid- 
ened to imposing avenues that run through a series 
of great parks, the native life may be studied on 
every hand-for a block from the big streets, with 
their clanging eledric cars, one comes upon narrow 
alleys lined with shops and teeming with life. Here, 
for the first time, the tourist sees Japanese city life, 
only slightly influenced by foreign customs. The 
streets are not more than twelve or fifteen feet wide, 
curbed on each side by flat blocks of granite, seldom 
more than a foot or eighteen inches wide. These 
furnish the only substitute for a sidewalk in rainy 
weather, as most of the streets are macadamized. A 
slight rainfall wets the surface and makes walking 



[lo] 



The Japanese Capital 

for the foreigner very disagreeable. The Japanese 
use in rainy weather the wooden sandal with two 
transverse clogs about two inches high, which lifts 
him out of the mud. All Japanese dignitaries and 
nearly all foreigners use the jinrikisha, which has the 
right of way in the narrow streets. The most com- 
mon sound in the streets is the bell of the rickshaw 
man or his warning shout of "Hi! Hi!" 

My first day's excursion included a ride through 
Shiba and Hibiya parks to Uyeno Park, the resting 
place of many of the shoguns. This makes a trip 
which will consume the entire day. Shiba Park is 
noteworthy for its temples (which contain some of 
the most remarkable specimens of Japanese art) and 
for the tombs of seven of the fifteen shoguns or native 
rulers who preceded the Mikado in the government 
of Japan. The first and third shoguns are buried at 
Nikko, while the fourth, fifth, eighth, ninth, elev- 
enth and thirteenth lie in Uyeno Park,Tokio. These 
mortuary chapels in Shiba Park are all similar in 
general design, the only differences being in the lav- 
ishness of the decoration. Out of regard for the for- 
eign visitor it is not necessary to remove one's shoes 
in entering these temples, as cloth covers are pro- 
vided. Each temple is divided into three parts— the 
outer oratory, a corridor and the inner sanftum, 
where the shogun alone was privileged to worship. 
The daimyos or nobles were lined up in the corridor, 
while the smaller nobles and chiefs filled the oratory. 
It would be tedious to describe these temples, but 
one will serve as a specimen of all. This is the temple 
of the second shogun, which is noteworthy for the 
beauty of the decoration of the sandum and the tomb. 

Two enormous gilded pillars support the vaulted 
roof of the sandum, which is formed of beams in a 
very curious pattern. A frieze of medallions of birds, 

['0 



The Critic in the Orient 

gilded and painted, runs around the top of the wall. 
The shrine dates back for two and one-half centuries 
and is of rich gold lacquer. The bronze incense 
burner, in the form of a lion, bears the date of 1635. 
The great war drum of leyasu, the first of the To- 
kugawa shoguns, lies upon a richly decorated stand. 
Back of the temple is the odagonal hall, which 
houses the tomb of the second shogun. This tomb 
is the largest example of gold lacquer in the world, 
and parts of it are inlaid with enamel and crystal. 
Scenes from Liao-Ling, China, and Lake Biwa, 
Japan, adorn the upper half, while the lower half 
bears elaborate decoration of the lion and the peony. 
The base of the tomb is a solid block of stone in 
the shape of the lotus. The hall is supported by 
eight pillars covered with gilded copper, and the 
walls are covered with gilded lacquer. The enor- 
mous amount of money expended on these shrines 
will amaze any foreign visitor, as well as the pro- 
found reverence shown by the Japanese for these 
resting places of the shoguns. 

Passing along a wide avenue traversed by eledric 
cars one soon reaches Hibiya Park, one of the show 
places of Tokio. To the European tourist or the vis- 
itor from our Eastern States the beauty of the vegeta- 
tion is a source of marvel, but San Francisco's Golden 
Gate Park can equal everything that grows here in 
the way of ornamental shrubs, trees and flowers. 
On the south side of the park are the Parliament 
buildings, and near by the fine, new brick buildings 
of the Naval and Judicial Departments and the 
courts. Near by are grouped many of the foreign 
legations, the palaces of princes and the mansions of 
of the Japanese officials and foreign embassadors. 
Here also is the Museum of Arms, which is very 
interesting because of the many specimens of ancient 

[12] 



The Japanese Capital 

Japanese weapons and the trophies of the wars with 
China and Russia. In this museum one may see 
the profound interest which the Japanese pilgrims 
from all parts of the empire take in these memorials 
of conquest. To them they rank with the sacred 
shrines as objeds of veneration. 

Not far away is the moat which surrounds the 
massive walls of the imperial palace, open only to 
those who have the honor of an imperial audience. 
These walls are of granite laid up without mortar, 
the corner stones being of unusual size. The visitor 
may see the handsome roofs of the imperial palaces. 
Those who have been admitted declare that the dec- 
orations and the furniture are in the highest style of 
Japanese art, although the simplicity and the neutral 
colors that mark the Shinto temples prevail in the 
private chambers of the Emperor. In the throne 
chamber and the banquet hall, on the other hand, 
gold and brilliant hues make a blaze of color. Near 
the palace grounds are the Government printing 
office and a number of schools. 

\ Turning down into Yoken street, one of the 
great avenues of traffic, you soon reach Uyeno Park— 
the most popular pleasure ground of the capital, and 
famous in the spring for its long lines of cherry trees 
in full blossom. In the autumn it impressed me, as 
did all the other Japanese parks, as rather damp and 
unwholesome^ The ground was saturated from re- 
cent rain; all the stonework was covered with moss 
and lichen; the trees dripped moisture, and the little 
lakes scattered here and there were like those gloomy 
tarns that Poe loved to paint in his poems. Near 
the entrance to this park is a shallow lake covered 
with lotus plants, and a short distance beyond from 
a little hill one may get a good view of the buildings 
of the imperial university. Here is a good foreign 

[13] 



The Critic in the Orient 

restaurant where one may enjoy a palatable lunch. 
Near by on a slight eminence stands a huge bronze 
image of Buddha, twenty-one and one-half feet high, 
called the Daibutsu. It is one of several such figures 
scattered over the empire. Passing through a mass- 
ive granite torii, or gate, one reaches an avenue of 
stately cryptomeria, or cedar trees that leads to a 
row of stone lanterns presented in 165 1 by daimyos 
as a memorial to the first shogun. The temple be- 
yond is famous for its beautiful lacquer. 

Near at hand are the temples and tombs of the 
six shoguns of the Tokugawa family, buried in Uy- 
eno Park. These temples are regarded as among 
the finest remains of old Japanese art. The mortu- 
ary temples bear a close resemblance to those in 
Shiba Park. The second temple is the finer and is 
celebrated for the gilding of the interior walls, the 
gorgeous decoration of the shrines and the memo- 
rial tablets in gold lacquer. Here, also, are eight 
tablets ereded to the memory of eight mothers of 
shoguns, all of whom were concubines. 

A short distance from Uyeno Park is the great 
Buddhist temple known as Asakusa Kwannon, ded- 
icated to Kwannon, the goddess of mercy. The ap- 
proaches to this temple on any pleasant day look 
like a country fair. The crowd is so dense that jin- 
rikishas can not approach within one hundred yards. 
The shrine dates back to the sixth century and the 
temple is the most popular resort of its kind in 
Tokio. On each side of the entrance lane are shops, 
where all kinds of curios, toys, cakes, et cetera, are 
sold. The temple itself is crowded with votaries who 
offer coins to the various idols, while below (near the 
stairs that give entrance to the temple) are various 
side booths that are patronized by worshipers. 
Some of these gods promise long life; others give 

[h] 




The Yomei-mori Gate, leyasu Temple, Nikko. 

One of the Most Beautiful Gates in all Japan. The Column* 

Are Painted White, with Capitals of Unicorns' Heads. 

The Roof is Supported by Gilt Dragons' Heads 



The Japanese Capital 

happiness, and several insure big families to women 
who offer money and say prayers. 

^ One of the remarkable jinrikisha rides in Japan 
is that from Uyeno to Shimbashi station through 
the heart of Tokio by night. This takes about 
a half hour and it gives a series of pidures of the 
great Japanese city that can be gained in no other 
way. Here may be seen miles of little shops lining 
alleys not over ten or twelve feet wide, in most of 
which work is going on busily as late as eleven 
o'clock. In places the sleepy proprietors are putting 
up their shutters, preparatory to going to bed, but 
in others the work of artisan or baker or weaver goes 
on as though the day had only fairly begun. Most 
of these shops are lighted by eledricity, but this 
light is the only modern thing about them. The 
weaver sits at the loom precisely as he sat two 
thousand years ago, and the baker kneads his dough 
and bakes his cakes precisely as he did before the 
days of the first shogun. This ride gives a pano- 
rama of oriental life which can be equaled in few cit- 
ies in the world. Occasionally the jinrikisha dashes 
up a little bank and across a bridge that spans a 
canal and one catches a glimpse of long lines of 
house boats, with dim lights, nestling under over- 
hanging balconies. Overall is that penetrating odor 
of the Far East, mingled with the smell of bilge 
water and the reek of thousands of sweating human 
beings. These smells are of the earth earthy and 
they led one to dream that night of weird and ter- 
rible creatures such as De Quincey paints in his Con- 
fessions of an English Opium Eater, 



['5] 



The Most Famous 

City of Temples in All 

Japan 



THE most magnificent temples in Japan are at 
Nikko, in the mountains, five hours' ride by 
train from Tokio. "What makes this trip the 
more enjoyable to the American tourist is that the 
country reminds him of the Catskills, and that he 
gets some glimpses of primitive Japanese life. The 
Japanese have a proverb: "Do not use the word 
'magnificent' until you have seen Nikko." And any- 
one who goes through the three splendid temples 
that serve as memorials of the early shoguns will 
agree that the proverb is true. 

The railroad ride to Nikko is tedious, although 
it furnishes greater variety than most of the other 
trips by rail through the Mikado's empire. But as 
soon as one is landed at the little station he recognizes 
that here is a place unlike any that he has seen. The 
road runs up a steep hill to the Kanaya Hotel, which 
is perched on a high bank overlooking the Daiya- 
gawa river. Tall cedar trees clothe the banks, and 
across the river rise mountains, with the roofs of 
temples showing through the foliage at their base. 
This hotel is gratefully remembered by all tourists 
because of the artistic decoration of the rooms in 
Japanese style and the beneficent care of the pro- 
prietor, which includes a pretty kimono to wear to 
the morning bath, with straw sandals for the feet, 
and charming waitresses in piduresque costumes. 



[1 6] 



Most Famous City of Temples 

The first Buddhist temple at Nikko dates back 
to the eighth century, but it was not until the seven- 
teenth century that the place was made a national 
shrine by building here the mausoleum of the first 
shogun,Ieyasu,and of his grandson, lemitsu. Hardly 
less noteworthy than these shrines and temples is 
the great avenue of giant cryptomeria trees, which 
stretches across the country for twenty miles, from 
Nikko to Utsunomiya. 

One of the chief objects of interest in Nikko is 
the Sacred Red Bridge which spans a swift stream 
about forty feet wide. This is a new bridge, as the 
old one was carried away by a great flood nine years 
ago. Originally built in 1 6^ 8, it served to commem- 
orate the legendary and miraculous bridging of the 
stream by Shodo Shonin, a saint. He arrived at the 
river one day while on a pilgrimage and called aloud 
for aid to cross. On the opposite bank appeared a 
being of gigantic size, who promised to help him, 
and at once flung across the stream two green and 
blue dragons which formed a bridge. When the saint 
was safely over the bridge, it vanished with the mys- 
terious being. Shodo at once built a hut on the 
banks of the stream. For fourteen years he dwelt 
there and gathered many disciples. Then he estab- 
lished a monastery and a shrine at Lake Chuzinji, 
about nine miles from Nikko. Nine hundred years 
later the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty 
sent two officials to Nikko to seled a site for the 
mausoleum of his father. They chose a site near 
Nikko, on a hill called Hotoke-iwa, and in the spring 
of 1 617 the tomb was completed and the coffin was 
deposited under it with appropriate Buddhist cere- 
monies. 

The road to the mausoleum winds around the 
river. The first objed on the way is a pillar ereded 

[17] 



The Critic in the Orient 

in 1643 ^° ward off evil influences. It is a cylin- 
drical copper column forty-two feet high, supported 
by short horizontal bars of the same material, resting 
on four short columns. Small bells hung from lotus- 
shaped cups crown the summit of the column. Just 
beyond this column is a massive granite torii, twenty- 
seven and one-half feet high, the gift of the Daimiyo 
of Chikuzen. To the left is a five-story pagoda, one 
hundred and four feet in height, which is especially 
graceful. Inside a red wooden wall are arranged a 
series of lacquered storehouses, a holy water cistern 
cut out of a solid block of granite, a finely decorated 
building in which rest a colledion of Buddhist writ- 
ings. A second court is reached by a flight of stairs. 
Here are gifts presented by the kings of Luchu, Hol- 
land and Korea, these three countries being regarded 
as vassal states of Japan. On the left is the Temple 
of Yahushi, beautifully decorated in red and gold lac- 
quer, and just beyond is a fine gate, called Yomei-mon, 
decorated with medallions of birds. Passing through 
this gate, one reaches a court bordered by several 
small buildings, one of which contains the palan- 
quins that are carried in the annual procession on 
June I St, when the deified spirits of the first shogun, 
Hideyoshi (the great conqueror), and Yoritomo oc- 
cupy them. Seventy-five men carry each of these 
palanquins. 

The main shrines are reached through the Chi- 
nese gate. The three chambers are magnificent spe- 
cimens of the finest work in lacquer, gold and metal. 
The tomb of leyasu, the first shogun, is reached by 
ascending two hundred stone steps. The tomb is in 
the form of a small pagoda of bronze of an unusually 
light color caused by the mixture of gold. The body 
of the shogun is buried twenty feet deep in a bed of 
charcoal. Beyond is the mausoleum of lemitsu, the 

[18] 



Most Famous City of Temples 

third shogun. The oratory and chapel are richly 
decorated, but they do not compare with those of 
the first shogun's tomb. Back of these tombs, among 
the huge cedar trees that clothe the sides of the 
mountain, is a small red shrine where women offer 
little pieces of wood that they may pass safely through 
the dangers of childbirth. Near by is the tomb of 
Shodo, the saint, and three of his disciples. 

^ These mortuary temples and tombs are genu- 
inely impressive. They bear many signs of age and 
it is evident that they are held in great veneration 
by the Japanese, who make pilgrimages at all seasons 
to offer up prayers at these sacred shrines. More 
impressive than the tombs themselves are the pil- 
grims. On the day that I visited this sacred shrine 
several large bands of pilgrims were entertained. One 
party was composed of over a hundred boys from 
one of the big government military schools. These 
lads were in uniform and each carried an umbrella 
and a lunch tied up in a handkerchief. The priests 
paid special attention to these young pilgrims and 
described for their benefit the marvels of carving and 
lacquer work. Services were held before the shrines 
and the glorious conquest of the shoguns and of 
Hideyoshi (popularly known as the Napoleon of 
Japan) were described in glowing words. The Rus- 
sian cannon captured at Port Arthur, which stands 
near the entrance to the tombs, was not forgotten 
by these priests, who never fail to do their part in 
stimulating the patriotism of the young pilgrims. 

These boys were followed by an equal number 
of public school girls, all dressed in dark red merino 
skirts and kimonos of various colors. Some were 
without stockings and none wore any head covering, 
although each girl carried her lunch and the inevi- 
table umbrella. 

[■9] 



The Critic in the Orient 

, After these children came several parties of ma- 
ture pilgrims, some finely dressed and bearing every 
evidence of wealth and position, while others were 
clothed in poor garments and showed great defer- 
ence to the priests and guides. All revealed genu- 
ine veneration for the sacred relics and all contributed 
according to their means to the various shrines. 
Some idea of the revenue drawn by the priests from 
tourists and pilgrims may be gained when it is said 
that admission is seventy sen (or thirty-five cents in 
American money) for each person, with half-rates to 
priests, teachers and school children, and to mem- 
bers of parties numbering one hundred. 

\The shops at Nikko will be found well worth a 
visit, as this city is the market for many kinds of 
furs that are scarce in America. Many fine speci- 
mens of wood carving may also be seen in the shops. 
The main street of the town runs from the Kanaya 
Hotel to the railroad depot, a distance of a mile and 
one-half, and it is lined for nearly the whole distance 
with small shops. 

On his return to the railroad the tourist would 
do well to take a jinrikisha ride of five miles down 
through the great avenue of old cryptomeria trees 
to the little station of Imaichi. This is one of the 
most beautiful rides in the world. The road is bor- 
dered on each side by huge cedar trees which are 
from one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet in 
height. In many cases the roots of these old trees 
have formed a natural embankment and the road is 
thus forced below the level of the surrounding rice 
fields. These trees were planted nearly three hun- 
dred years ago and they are certainly In a remark- 
able state of preservation. A few gaps there are, due 
to the vandalism of the country people, but mile 
after mile is passed with only an occasional break in 

[20] 



Most Famous City of Temples 

these stately columns, crowned by the deep green 
masses of foliage. Another cryptomeria avenue in- 
terseds this and runs for twenty-five miles across the 
country. The two avenues were planted in order that 
they might be used by the shogun's messengers when 
they bore important letters to him during his sum- 
mer residence in Nara. 



[21] 



In Kyoto, 

The Ancient Capital 

OF Japan 



NEXT to Nikko, one of the most interesting 
cities in Japan is Kyoto, the old capital under 
the shoguns, the seat of several fine palaces 
and many beautiful temples, and the center of large 
manufacturing works of satsuma and cloissone ware, 
damascene work and art work on silk and velvet. 
Kyoto may be reached by a short ride from Kobe, but 
fromTokio it is an all-day trip of twelve hours by ex- 
press train. This ride,which would be comfortable in 
well appointed cars, is made tedious by the Japanese 
preference for cars with seats arranged along the side, 
like the new American pay-as-you-enter street cars. 
For a short ride the side seat may be endured, but 
for hours of travel (especially when one is a tourist 
and wishes to see the scenery on both sides of the 
road) the cars are extremely tiresome. 

By seleding the express train and buying first- 
class ticketsit was hoped to avoid any crowd but,unfor- 
tunately, the day chosen saw many other tourists on 
their way across Japan. The result was that the first- 
class car was packed and many who had paid first-class 
fares were forced to ride in the second-class cars. In 
my car one side was occupied almost wholly by Jap- 
anese. Two were in American dress, one was an 
army officer in uniform, another a clerk with many 
packages, and the remaining two were an old couple, 
richly dressed. The Japanese, in traveling first-class. 



[2 2] 



Kyoto, Ancient Capital of Japan 

generally brings a rug or fur, which he spreads over 
the seat. On this he sits with his feet drawn up under 
him in the national style. Smoking is not prohib- 
ited even in the first-class cars, so that the American 
ladies in the cars had to endure the smell of various 
kinds of Japanese tobacco, in addition to the heat, 
which was rendered more disagreeable by the fre- 
quent closing of the windows as the train dashed 
through many tunnels. The old couple carried lunch 
in several hampers and they indulged in a very elab- 
orate luncheon, helped out by tea purchased in little 
pots from a dealer at a station. The army officer 
bought one of the small wooden lunch boxes sold 
along all Japanese railways, which contain boiled 
rice, fried fish and some boiled sweet potatoes. This, 
with a pot of tea, made a good lunch. The Japanese 
in European costume patronized the dining-car, 
where an excellent lunch was served for one yen, or 
fifty cents in American money. 

"^ The scenery along the line of the railway varied. 
The road skirts the coast for many miles, then cuts 
across several mountain ranges to Nagoya,then along 
the shores of Owari bay (an arm of the ocean), thence 
across the country to the lower end of Lake Biwa, 
near which Kyoto is situated. In the old days this 
journey consumed twelve days, and the road twice 
every year furnished a piduresque procession of the 
retinues of great nobles or dalmiyos traveling from 
Kyoto to Tokio to present their respedis to the 
shogun. The road was skirted by great cryptomeria, 
and avenues of these fine trees may still be seen 
near Nikko. 

^ Kyoto was a great city in medieval days, when it 
was the residence of the Mikado. From 793 until 
1868, when the court removed to Tokio, Kyoto re- 
mained the capital. Its importance, however, began 

[23] 



The Critic in the Orient 

to decline with the founding of Yedo, or Tokio, in 
1590, and to-day many miles of its former streets 
are devoted to the growing of rice. In this way sev- 
eral of the finest temples, which were once in the 
heart of the old city, are now relegated to the sub- 
urbs. Besides the Mikado's palace and Nijo castle, 
which may be visited only by special permit, Kyoto 
boasts of an unusual number of richly decorated 
temples, among which the most noteworthy are the 
Shinto temple of Inari; the temple of the one thou- 
sand images of Kwannon, the Deity of Mercy; the 
great Buddhist temple of Nishi-Honguanji, cele- 
brated for its art work in paintings and decorated 
woods; the great bronze Buddha, fifty-eight feet 
high; the big bell near by, nearly fourteen feet high, 
and the other in the Cheon-in temple here— these 
being two of the four largest bells in all Japan. 
To describe the treasures in art and decoration, in 
gold and lacquer, in these palaces, would be tire- 
some. Unless one is a student of Japanese art the 
visiting of temples soon becomes a great bore, for 
one temple or one palace is a repetition of others 
already seen, with merely minor differences in archi- 
tedlure and decoration, which appeal only to the 
specialist. 

\ Kyoto, however, is of great Interest for its many 
art shops— since applied art, as seen in satsuma and 
cloissone ware and in damascene, have almost reached 
the level of pure art. A visit to one of the satsuma 
fadlorles Is an interesting experience, as it shows how 
little the art of Japan has been influenced by the 
foreigner. Here one sees the potter at his wheel, 
precisely as in the days of the Bible. He does not 
avail himself of eledlric power but whirls his wheel 
by hand and foot, exadly as in the time of Christ. 
Passing from the pottery to the art rooms, one finds 

[24] 



Kyoto, Ancient Capital of Japan 

a number of Japanese men and girls painting elab- 
orate designs on bowls and vases and other articles. 
These artists grind and mix their own oil colors, 
which they proceed to lay on slowly upon the article 
they are decorating. The patience of these artists is 
indescribable. Infinite pains is taken with a single 
flower or tree or figure of man or bird. One vase 
exhibited here is covered with butterflies which range 
from natural size down to figures so small that they 
can be discerned only under a magnifying glass. 
Yet, this vase, which represents such an enormous 
outlay of labor and time, is sold at thirty dollars in 
American money. 

At the damascene works both men and women 
are also employed, although the finest work is done 
by the men. The art consists in beating into bronze 
small particles of gold leaf until they have become 
an adtual part of the baser metal. This gold is ar- 
ranged in a great variety of design and, after being 
beaten in, the article is subjeded to powerful heat, 
which oxidizes the metal and thus prevents any 
change due to the weather. At this Kyoto fadory 
were turned out the most artistic jewelry, boxes, 
cigarette cases and a great variety of small articles, 
many of which sold at absurdly low prices, consider- 
ing the amount of labor and time expended on them. 
\ Kyoto will be found one of the best cities in 
Japan for the purchase of the art work just described, 
as well as embroidery, silks and other stuflTs. In 
many of these shops the work is done on the prem- 
ises and hence the prices are cheaper than in any 
other city except Yokohama. It is worth while to 
visit the shops that exhibit bronze work, silks, vel- 
vets and carvings in ivory and wood, as well as curios 
of many kinds. Most of these shopkeepers demand 
more than they exped to receive, but in a few shops 

[25] 



The Critic in the Orient 

the goods are plainly marked and no redudion in 
price can be secured. At Kyoto the tourist will find 
many traces of primitive Japanese life, especially in 
the unfrequented streets and in the suburbs. Here 
in the bed of the river, a portion of which was being 
walled up for a canal, were employed a dozen women 
digging up gravel and carrying it in baskets to carts 
near by. They had their skirts tied up and they 
were working in mud and water which reached to 
their knees. It was not a pleasant spedacle, but it 
excited no comment in this country, where women 
labor in the rice fields by the side of men. 

A short ride from Kyoto brings the visitor to 
Nara, the seat of the oldest temples in Japan, and 
famous for the tame deer in the park. A long ave- 
nue of stone lanterns leads to the principal temples, 
in an ancient cedar grove. The main temple gives an 
impression of great age by its heavy thatched roof. 
\Next looms up the gigantic wooden structure, 
which houses Daibutsa, the great bronze image of 
Buddha. This statue, which dates back to the eighth 
century, is fifty-three and one-quarter feet high; the 
face is sixteen feet long and nine and one-quarter 
feet wide. The god is in a sitting position, with the 
legs crossed. The head, which is darker than the 
remainder of the image, replaced in the sixteenth 
century the original head destroyed by fire. The 
expression of this Buddha is not benignant, and the 
image is impressive only because of its size. It has 
two images eighteen feet in height on either hand, 
but these seemed dwarfed by the huge central figure. 

The park at Nara is very interesting, because of 
the tame deer which have no fear of the stranger in 
European dress, but will eat cakes from his hand. 
One of the sources of revenue is to sell these cakes 
to the tourist, 

[26] 



Kyoto, Ancient Capital of Japan 

i A visit was paid to an old temple at Horyuji, 
about eight miles from Nara, which is famous as the 
oldest Buddhist temple in Japan. It contains a val- 
uable collection of ancient Japanese works of art. 
The rickshaw ride to this place is of great interest, 
as the road passes through a rich farming country 
and two small towns which seem to have been little 
affefled by European influence. In the fertile val- 
ley below Nara rice is grown on an extensive scale, 
these paddy fields being veritable swamps which can 
be crossed only by high paths running through them, 
at distances of thirty or forty feet. Here also may 
be seen the curious method of trellising orchards of 
pear trees with bamboo poles. The trellis supports 
the upper branches and this prevents them from 
breaking down under the weight of fruit, while it 
also makes easy the picking of fruit. Agriculture at 
its best is seen in this fertile Japanese valley. One 
peculiarity of this country, as of other parts of rural 
Japan, is that one sees none of the scattered farm- 
houses which dot every American farming seftion. 
Instead of building on his own land the farmer lives 
in a village to which he returns at night after his 
day's work. 



[27] 



Kobe, Osaka, 

The Inland Sea and 

Nagasaki 



KOBE is regarded as a base for the tourist who 
wishes to make short excursions to Kyoto, 
Osaka and other cities. It was established as 
a foreign settlement in 1868, and has grown so re- 
markably during the last ten years that now it exceeds 
in imports and exports any other city in Japan. Kobe 
is one of the most attraftive cities in the empire, be- 
ing built on a pretty harbor, with the land rising like 
an amphitheater. Scores of handsome residences are 
scattered over the foothills near the sea. Those on 
the lower side of the streets that run parallel to the 
harbor have gardens walled up on the rear, while the 
houses on the upper side of the streets have massive 
retaining walls. These give opportunity for many 
ornamental gateways. 

Kobe has many large government schools, but 
the institutions which I found of greatest interest 
were Kobe College for Women, conduced by Miss 
Searle, and the Glory Kindergarten, under the man- 
agement of Miss Howe. Kobe College, which was 
founded over thirty years ago, is maintained by the 
Women's Board of Missions of Chicago. It has two 
hundred and twenty-five pupils, of whom all except 
about fifty are lodged and boarded on the premises. 
I heard several of the classes reciting in English. The 
primary class in English read simple sentences from 
a blackboard and answered questions put by the 



[28] 



Kobe, Osaka, Inland Sea, Nagasaki 
teacher. A fewspoke good English,but the great ma- 
jority failed to open their mouths, and the result was 
the indistind enunciation that is so trying to under- 
stand. Another class was reading Hamlet, but the 
pupils made sad work of Shakespeare's verse. The 
Japanese reading of English is always monotonous, 
because their own language admits of no emphasis; 
so their use of English is no more strange than our 
attempts at Japanese, in which we employ emphasis 
that excites the ridicule of the Mikado's subjefts. 

\ Not far from this college is the kintergarten, 
which Miss Howe has carried on for twenty-four 
years. She takes little tots of three or four years of 
age and trains them in Froebel's methods. So suc- 
cessful has she been in her work among these chil- 
dren of the best Japanese families of Kobe that she 
has a large waiting list. She has also trained many 
Japanese girls in kintergarten work. All the chil- 
dren at this school looked unusually bright, as they 
are drawn from the educated classes. It sounded 
very strange to hear American and English lullabies 
being chanted by these tots in the unfamiliar Japa- 
nese words. 

, Osaka, the chief manufacturing city of Japan, is 
only about three-quarters of an hour's ride from 
Kobe. It spreads over nine miles square and lies on 
both sides of the Yodogawa river. The most in- 
teresting thing in Osaka is the castle built by Hide- 
yoshi, the Napoleon of Japan, in 1583. The strong 
wall was once surrounded by a deep moat and an 
outer wall, which made it pradtically impregnable. 
What will surprise anyone is the massive charafter 
of the inner walls which remain. Here are blocks 
of solid granite, many of them measuring forty 
feet in length by ten feet in height. It must have 
required a small army of men to place these stones 

[29] 



The Critic in the Orient 

in position, but so well was this work done (without 
the aid of any mortar) that the stones have remained 
in place during all these years. From the summit 
of the upper wall a superb view may be gained of 
the surrounding country. 

\ From Kobe the tourist makes the trip through 
the Inland Sea by steamer. Its length is about two 
hundred and forty miles and its greatest width is 
forty miles. The trip through this sea, which in some 
places narrows to a few hundred feet, is deeply in- 
teresting. The hills remind a Californian strongly 
of the Marin hills opposite San Francisco, but here 
they are terraced nearly to their summits and are 
green with rice and other crops. Many of the hills 
are covered with a growth of small cedar trees, and 
these trees lend rare beauty to the various points of 
land that proje<5l into the sea. At two places in the 
sea the steamer seems as though she would surely 
go on the rocks in the narrow channel, but the pilot 
swings her almost within her own length and she 
turns again into a wider arm of the sea. In these 
narrow channels the tide runs like a mill race, and 
without a pilot (who knows every current) any ves- 
sel would be in extreme danger. The steamer leaves 
Kobe about ten o'clock at night and reaches Naga- 
saki, the most western of Japanese cities, about seven 
o'clock the following morning. 

Nagasaki in some ways reminds one of Kobe, 
but the hills are steeper and the most striking fea- 
ture of the town is the massive stone walls that sup- 
port the streets winding around the hills, and the 
elaborate paving of many of these side-hill streets 
with great blocks of granite. The rainfall is heavy 
at Nagasaki, so we find here a good system of gut- 
ters to carry off the water. The harbor is pretty and 
on the opposite shore are large engine works, three 

[30] 




The Daibutsu or Great Bronze Buddha 

at Hyogo, Near Kobe. This Impressive Figure is Forty-eight 

Feet High and Eighty-five Feet Round the Waist. It is 

Not so Fine as the Daibutsu at Kamakura But 

Surpasses That at Nara 



Kobe, Osaka, Inland Sea, Nagasaki 
large docks and a big ship-building plant, all belong- 
ing to the Mitsu Bishi Company. Here some five 
thousand workmen are constantly employed. 

• One of the great industries of Nagasaki is the 
coaling of Japanese and foreign steamships. A very 
fair kind of steam coal is sold here at three dollars a 
ton, which is less by one dollar and one-half than a 
poorer grade of coal can be bought for in Seattle; 
hence the steamer Minnesota coaled here. The coal- 
ing of this huge ship proved to be one of the most 
pidluresque sights of her voyage. Early on the morn- 
ing of her arrival lighters containing about a railway 
carload of coal began to arrive. These were arranged 
in regular rows on both sides of the ship. Then 
came out in big sampans an army of Japanese num- 
bering two thousand in all. The leaders arranged 
ladders against the sides of the ship, and up these 
swarmed this army of workers, three-quarters of 
whom were young girls between fourteen and eight- 
een years old. They were dressed in all colors, but 
most of them wore a native bonnet tied about the 
ears. They formed in line on the stairs and then 
the coal was passed along from hand to hand until 
it reached the bunkers. These baskets held a little 
over a peck of coal, and the rapidity with which they 
moved along this living line was startling. 

'^ Every few minutes the line was given a breath- 
ing space, but the work went on with a deadly regu- 
larity that made the observer tired to watch it. 
Occasionally one of the young girls would flag in 
her work and, after she dropped a few basket- 
fuls, she would be relieved and put at the lighter 
work of throwing the empty baskets back into the 
lighters. Most of these girls, however, remained ten 
hours at this laborious work, and a few worked 
through from seven o'clock in the morning until 

[31] 



The Critic in the Orient 

nearly midnight, when the last basket of coal was 
put on board. At work like this no such force of 
Europeans would have shown the same self-control 
and constant courtesy which these Japanese exhibited. 
Wranglings would have been inevitable, and the 
strong workers would have shown little regard for 
their weaker companions. 

\ Another feature of this Japanese work was the 
elimination of any strain or overexertion. If a girl 
failed to catch a basket as it whirled along the line 
she dropped it instantly. Never did I see anyone 
reach over or strain to do her work. 

V The rest for lunch occupied only about fifteen 
minutes, the begrimed workers sitting down on the 
steps of the ladders and eating their simple food 
with keen relish. At night when strong eledric 
lights cast their glare over these constantly moving 
lines of figures the effed: was almost grotesque, re- 
minding one of Gustave Dore's terrible pidures of the 
lost souls in torment, or of the scramble to escape 
when the deluge came. The skill that comes of long 
pradice marked the movements of all these workers, 
and it was rare that any basket was dropped by an 
awkward or tired coal-passer. 

In seventeen hours four thousand five hundred 
tons of coal were loaded on the steamer. About 
fifteen hundred people were working on the various 
ladders, while another five hundred were employed 
in trimming the coal in the hold and in managing 
the various boats. The result was an exhibit of what 
can be done by primitive methods when perfed 
co-operation is secured. 

Nagasaki itself has little that will interest the 
tourist but a ride or walk to Mogi, on an arm of 
the ocean, five miles away, may be taken with profit. 
The road passes over a high divide and, as it runs 

[32] 



Kobe, Osaka, Inland Sea, Nagasaki 

through a farming country, one is able to see here 
(more perfedlly than in any other part of Japan) how 
carefully every acre of tillable land is cultivated. On 
both sides of this road from Nagasaki to the fishing 
village of Mogi were fields enclosed by permanent 
walls of stone, such as would be built in America 
only to sustain a house. In many cases the ground 
protected by this wall was not over half an acre in 
extent, and in some cases the fields were of smaller 
size. Tier after tier of these walls extended up the 
sides of the steep hills. The effed at a little distance 
was startling, as the whole landscape seemed artifi- 
cial. The result of this series of walls was to make 
a succession of little mesas or benches such as may 
be seen in southern California. 



[33] 



Development 

OF THE Japanese Sense of 

Beauty 



A FTER a trip through Japan the question that 
/\ confronts the observant tourist is: What has 
X ^\» preserved the fine artistic sense of the Japa- 
nese people of all classes, in the face of the material- 
ist influences that have come into their life with the 
introduction of Western methods of thought and of 
business? The most careless traveler has it thrust 
upon him that here is a people artistic to the tips of 
their fingers, and with childlike power of idealiza- 
tion, although they have been forced to engage in 
the fierce warfare of modern business competition. 
What is it that has kept them unspotted from the 
world of business? What secret source of spiritual 
force have they been able to draw upon to keep fresh 
and dewy this eager, artistic sense that must be 
developed with so much labor among any Western 
people? 

The answer to these questions is found, by sev- 
eral shrewd observers, in the Japanese devotion to 
their gardens. Every Japanese, no matter how small 
and poor his house, has a garden to which he may 
retire and "invite his soul." These Japanese gardens 
are unique and are found in no other land. China 
has the nearest approach to them, but the poor Chi- 
nese never dreams of spending time and money in 
the development of a garden, such as the Japanese 
in similar circumstances regards as a necessity. And 



[34] 



Development of Sense of Beauty 

these Japanese gardens are always made to conform 
to the house and its architedture. The two never 
fail to fit and harmonize. A poor man may have 
only a square of ground no larger than a few feet, 
but he will so arrange it as to give it an appearance 
of spaciousness, while the more elaborate gardens 
are laid out so as to give the impression of unlimited 
extent. The end of the garden appears to melt into 
the horizon, and the owner has a background that 
extends for miles into the country. By the artistic 
use of stones and dwarf plants, a few square feet of 
ground are made to give the eiFe6l of liberal space 
and, with bridges, moss-covered stones, ponds, gold 
fish and other features, a perfed; illusion of the coun- 
try may be produced. 

\ Into this garden the master of the house retires 
after the work of the day. There he takes none of 
his business or professional cares. He gives himself 
wholly to the contemplation of Nature. He becomes 
for the time as a little child, and his soul is pleased 
with childish things. For him this garden, with its 
pretty outlook on a larger world, serves as the 
boundary of the universe. Here he may dream of 
the legends of the Samurai, before Japan fell under 
the evil influence of the new God of Gain. Here he 
may indulge in the day-dreams that have always been 
a part of the national consciousness. Here, in fine, 
he may get closer to the real heart of Nature than 
any Occidental can ever hope to reach. 

. It is this capacity to get close to Nature that the 
Japanese possess beyond any other Oriental people— 
and this capacity is not limited to those of means or 
leisure or education. The poor man, who has a daily 
struggle to get enough rice to satisfy his moderate 
wants, is as open to these influences as the rich man 
who is not worried by any material wants. There Is 

[3S] 



The Critic in the Orient 

no distinftion of classes in this universal worship of 
beauty— this passion for all that is lovely in nature. 
It was not my good fortune to be in Japan at the 
time of the cherry-blossom festival— but these fetes 
merely serve to bring out this national passion for 
beauty and color, which finds expression not only in 
the gardens throughout the empire but in painting, 
drawing and in working on silks and other fabrics. 
The same instindive art sense is seen in the work 
of the cabinet-maker and even in the designs of gate- 
ways and the doors of houses. The eye and the 
hand of the common worker in wood and metal is 
as sure as the hand of the great artist. Such is the 
influence of this constant study of beauty in nature 
and art. 

V When you watch a busy Japanese artisan you get 
a good idea of the spirit that animates his work. He 
regards himself as an artist, and he shows the same 
sureness of hand and the same sense of form and 
color as the designer in colors or the painter of por- 
traits or landscapes. All the beautiful gateways or 
torii, as they are called, are works of art. They have 
one stereotyped form, but the artists embellish these 
in many ways and the result is that every entrance 
to a large estate or a public ground is pleasing to 
the eye. As these gateways are generally lacquered in 
black or red or gold, they add much to the beauty 
and color of each scene. The ornamental lattice over 
nearly every door also adds enormously to the ef- 
fediveness of even a simple interior. 

Watch a worker on cloissone enamel and you 
will be amazed at the rapidity and the accuracy with 
which he paints designs on this beautiful ware. With- 
out any pattern he proceeds to sketch with his brush 
an intricate design of flowers, birds or insefts, and 
he develops this with an unerring touch that is little 

[36] 



Development of Sense of Beauty 

short of marvelous, when one considers that he has 
never had any regular training in drawing but has 
grown up in the shop and has gained all his skill 
from watching and imitating the work of his master 
on the bench at his side. One day in Kyoto I watched 
a mere boy gradually develop a beautiful design 
of several hundred butterflies gradually becoming 
smaller and smaller until they vanished at the top 
of the vase. What he proposed to make of this was 
shown in a finished design that was exquisite in the 
gradation of form and color. The same skill of hand 
and eye was seen in the shops of Kyoto where dam- 
ascene ware is made. Gold and silver is hammered 
into steel and other metals, so that the intricate de- 
signs aftually seem to become a part of the metal. 
In carving in wood the Japanese excel, and in such 
places as Nikko and Nara the tourist may pick up 
the most elaborate carvings at absurdly low prices. 



[37] 



Conclusions 

ON Japanese Life and 

Character 



IN summing up one's observations of Japanese 
life and chara6ler, after a brief trip across the 
empire, it is necessary to exercise much care and 
not to take the accidental for the ordinary incidents 
of life. Generalizations from such observations on 
a hurried journey are especially deadly. To guard 
against such error I talked with many people, and 
the conclusions given here are drawn from the rad- 
ically different views of missionaries, merchants, 
steamship agents, bankers and others. Generous al- 
lowance must be made for the prejudices of each 
class, but even then the forming of any conclusions 
is difficult. This is due largely to the fad: that the 
Japanese a half-century ago were mediaeval in life 
and thought, and that the remarkable advances which 
they have made in material and intellectual affairs 
have been crowded into a little more than the life of 
two generations. 

The most common charge made against the Jap- 
anese as a race is that their standard of commercial 
morality is low as compared with that of the Chi- 
nese. The favorite instance, which is generally cited 
by those who do not like the Japanese, is that all 
the big banks in Japan employ Chinese shroffs or 
cashiers, who handle all the money, as Japanese 
cashiers cannot be trusted. This ancient fiction 
should have died a natural death, but it seems as 



[38] 



Japanese Life and Character 

though it bears a charmed life, although its untruth 
has been repeatedly exposed by the best authorities 
on Japan. 

The big foreign banks in all the large Japanese 
cities do employ Chinese shroffs, because these men 
are most expert in handling foreign money and be- 
cause they usually have a large acquaintance all along 
the Chinese coast among the clients of the banks. 
The large Japanese banks, on the other hand, em- 
ploy Japanese in all positions of trust and authority, 
as do all the smaller banks throughout the empire. 
Many of the cashiers of these smaller banks under- 
stand English, particularly those that have dealings 
with foreigners. At a native bank in Kobe, which 
was Cook's correspondent in that city, I cashed sev- 
eral money orders, and the work was done as speed- 
ily as it would have been done in any American 
bank. The fittings of the bank were very cheap; the 
office force was small, but the cashier spoke excellent 
English and he transacted business accurately and 
speedily. 

\ In making any generalizations on the lack of 
rigid commercial honesty among Japanese merchants 
it may be well for me to quote the opinion of an 
eminent American educator who has spent over forty 
years in Japan. He said, in discussing this subjed: 
"We must always consider the training of the Jap- 
anese before their country was thrown open to for- 
eign trade. For years the nation had been ruled by 
men of the Samurai or military class, with a rigid 
code of honor, but with a great contempt for trade 
and tradesmen. Naturally business fell into the 
hands of the lower classes who did not share the 
keen sense of honor so general among their rulers. 
Hence, there grew up lax ideas of commercial mor- 
ality, which were fostered by the carelessness in 

[39] 



The Critic in the Orient 

money matters among the nobility and aristocracy. 
Much of the prevalent Japanese inability to refrain 
from overcharging, or delivering an inferior article 
to that shown to the customer, dates back to these 
days of feudal life. The years of contad with the 
foreigners have been too few to change the habits of 
centuries. Another thing which must always be con- 
sidered is the relation of master and vassal under 
feudal life. That relation led to peculiar customs. 
Thus, if an artisan engaged to build a house for his 
overlord he would give a general estimate, but if the 
cost exceeded the sum he named, he expeded his 
master to make up the deficit. This custom has been 
carried over into the new regime, so that the Japa- 
nese merchant or mechanic of to-day, although he 
may make a formal contrad, does not expedt to be 
bound by it, or to lose money should the price of 
raw material advance, or should he find that any 
building operations have cost more than his original 
estimate. In such case the man who orders manu- 
fadured goods or signs a contra6t for any building 
operations seems to recognize that equity requires 
him to pay more than was stipulated in the bond. 
When Japanese deal with Japanese this custom is 
generally observed. It is only the foreigner who 
expeds the Japanese to fulfill his contrad: to the 
letter, and it is the attempt to enforce such contrafts 
which gives the foreign merchant his poor opinion 
of Japanese commercial honesty. In time, when the 
Japanese have learned that they must abide by writ- 
ten contrads, these complaints will be heard no 
longer. The present slipshod methods are due to 
faulty business customs, the outgrowth of the old 
Samurai contempt for trade in any form.** 

.^ In dealing with small Japanese merchants in va- 
rious cities, it was my experience that they are as 

[40] 



Japanese Life and Character 

honest as similar dealers in other countries. Usually 
they demanded about one-half more than they ex- 
pedled to receive. Then they made redu(5lions and 
finally a basis of value was agreed upon. This chaf- 
fering seems to be a part of their system; but the 
merchants and manufadlurers who are brought most 
often into contad: with Europeans are coming to 
have a fixed price for all their goods, on which they 
will give from ten to twenty per cent, redudion, 
according to the amount of purchases. One manu- 
fadurer in Kyoto who sold his own goods would 
make no redudion, except in the case of some sam- 
ples that he was eager to sell. His goods were all 
plainly marked and he calmly allowed tourists to 
leave his store rather than make any cut in his prices. 
The pains and care which the Japanese dealer will 
take to please his customer is something which might 
be imitated with profit by foreign dealers. 

' A question that is very frequently put is,"What 
has been the influence of Christianity upon Japanese 
life and thought?" This is extremely difficult to 
answer, because even those who are engaged in 
missionary work are not always in accord in their 
views. One missionary of thirty years' experience 
said: "The most noteworthy feature of religious 
work in Japan is the number of prominent Japanese 
who have become converts to Christianity. The 
new Premier, who is very familiar with life in the 
United States, may be cited as one of these converts. 
Such a man in his position of power will be able to 
do much to help the missionaries. The usual charge 
that Japanese embrace Christianity in order to learn 
English without expense falls to the ground before 
adlual personal experience. The converts always 
seemed to me to be as sincere as converts in China 
or Corea, but it must be admitted that the strong 

[4>] 



The Critic in the Orient 

materialist bent of modern Japanese education and 
thought is making it more difficult to appeal to the 
present generation." 

An educator who has had much experience with 
Japanese said: "Itlooks to me as though Japan would 
soon reach a grave crisis in national life. Hitherto 
Buddhism and Shintoism have been the two forces 
that have preserved the religious faith of the people 
and kept their patriotism at white heat. Now the 
influences in the public schools are all antagonistic 
to any religious belief. The young men and women 
are growing up (both in the public schools and the 
government colleges) to have a contempt for all the 
old religious beliefs. They cannot accept the Shinto 
creed that the Emperor is the son of God and should 
be worshiped as a deity by all loyal Japanese. They 
cannot accept the dodlrines of Buddha, as they see 
the New Japan giving the lie to these do6lrines every 
day in its home and international dealings. Nothing 
is left but atheism, and the experience of the world 
proves that there is nothing more dangerous to a 
nation than the loss of its religious faith. The women 
of Japan are slower to accept these new materialist 
views than the men, but the general breaking down 
of the old faith is something which no foreign resi- 
dent of Japan can fail to see. On the other side 
patriotism is kept alive by the pilgrimages of school 
children to the national shrines, but one is confronted 
with the questions,*Will the boys and girls of a few 
years hence regard these shrines with any devotion 
when they know that Buddhism and Shintoism are 
founded on a faith that science declares has no foun- 
dation? Will they offer up money and homage to 
wooden images which their cultivated reason tells 
them are no more worthy of worship than the tele- 
graph poles along the lines of the railway?*" 

[42] 



Japanese Life and Character 

\The Japanese way of doing things is the exa6l 
reverse of the American way generally, but if one 
studies the methods of this Oriental race it will be 
found that their way is frequently most effedive. 
Thus, in addressing letters they always put the city 
first, then the street address and finally the number, 
while they never fail to put the writer's name and 
address on the reverse of the envelope, which saves 
the postoffice employes much trouble and pradically 
eliminates the dead-letter office. 

V The Japanese sampan, as well as other boats, is 
never painted, but it is always scrubbed clean. The 
sampan has a sharp bow and a wide, square stern, 
and navigators say it will live in a sea which would 
swamp the ordinary Whitehall boat of our water- 
front. The Japanese oar is long and looks unwieldy, 
being spliced together in the middle. It is balanced 
on a short wooden peg on the gunwale and the 
oarsman works it like a sweep, standing up and 
bending over it at each stroke. The result is a scull- 
ing motion, which carries the boat forward very rap- 
idly. In no Japanese harbor do the big steamships 
come up to the wharf. They drop anchor in the 
harbor, and they are always surrounded by small 
sampans, the owners of which are eager to take pas- 
sengers ashore for about twenty-five cents each. All 
cargo is taken aboard by lighters or unloaded in the 
same way. These lighters hold as much as a railroad 
freight car. 

, The fishing boats of Japan add much to the pic- 
turesqueness of all the harbors, as they have sails 
arranged in narrow strips laced to bamboo poles, and 
they may be drawn up and lowered like the curtains 
in an American shop window. Whether square or 
triangular, these sails have a graceful appearance and 
they are handled far more easily than ours. 

[43] 



The Critic in the Orient 

\ The Japanese carpenter, who draws his plane as 
well as his saw toward himself, appears to work in 
an awkward and ungainly way, but he does as fine 
work as the American cabinet-maker. The beauty 
of the interior woodwork of even the houses of the 
poorer classes is a constant marvel to the tourist. 
Nothing is ever painted about the Japanese house, 
so the fineness of the grain of the wood is revealed 
as well as the exquisite polish. A specialty of the 
Japanese carpenter is lattice-work for the windows 
and grill-work for doors. These add very much to 
the beauty of unpretentious houses. 

\ In conclusion it may be said that Japan offers 
the lover of the beautiful an unlimited opportunity 
to gratify his aesthetic senses. In city or country he 
cannot fail to find on every hand artistic things that 
appeal powerfully to his sense of beauty. Whether 
in an ancient temple or a new home for a poor vil- 
lage artisan, he will see the results of the same in- 
stindlive sense of the beautiful and the harmonious. 
The lines are always lines of grace, and the colors 
are always those which blend and gratify the eye. 



[44] 



Will the 

Japanese Retain Their 

Good Traits? 



A NY thoughtful visitor to Japan must be im- 
/\ pressed with the problems that confront Japan 
X ^Jl to-day, owing to the influence of foreign 
thought and customs. This influence is the more to 
be dreaded because the Japanese are so impression- 
able and so prone to accept anything which they are 
convinced is superior to their own. They have very 
little of the Chinese passion for what has been made 
sacred by long usage. They have high regard for 
their ancestors, but very little reverence for their 
customs and opinions. This lack of vejieration is 
shown in striking fashion by those Japanese stu- 
dents who come to this country to gain an education. 
These young men are as eager as the ancient Athen- 
ians for any new thing, and when they return to 
their old homes each is a center of Occidental influ- 
ence. This is frequently not for the best interests of 
their countrymen, who have not had their own op- 
portunities of observation and comparison. 

\The qualities in which the Japanese excel are the 
very qualities in which so many Americans are de- 
ficient. Personal courage and loyalty are the traits 
which Professor Scherer, a distinguished expert, re- 
gards as the fundamental traits of the Japanese char- 
a6ter. That these qualities have not been weakened 
materially was shown in the recent war with Russia. 
In that tremendous struggle was demonstrated the 

[45] 



The Critic in the Orient 
power of a small nation, in which everyone-men, 
women and children— were united in a passionate 
devotion to their country. No similar spedacle was 
ever shown in modern history. The men who went 
cheerfully to certain death before Port Arthur re- 
vealed no higher loyalty than the wives at home 
who committed suicide that their husbands might 
not be called upon to choose between personal devo- 
tion to their family and absolute loyalty to the nation. 
\ The foreign correspondents, who were on two- 
hundred-and-three-metre hill before Port Arthur, 
have told of the Japanese soldiers in the ranks who 
tied ropes to their feet in order that their comrades 
might pull their bodies back into the trenches. All 
those who were drafted to make the assaults on the 
Russian works in that awful series of encounters 
(which make the charge of the Light Brigade at Bal- 
aklava seem cheap and theatrical) knew they were 
going to certain death. Yet these foreign observers 
have left on record that the only sentiment among 
those who remained in the trenches was envy that 
they had not been so fortunate as to be sele6led to 
show this supreme loyalty to their country. General 
Nogi, who recently committed suicide with his wife 
on the day of the funeral of the late Emperor, had 
two sons dash to this certain death on the blood- 
stained hill before Port Arthur. As commander, he 
could have assigned them to less dangerous posi- 
tions, but it probably never entered his head to shield 
his own flesh and blood. And the same loyalty that 
is shown to country is also proved in the relation of 
servant to master. The story of the Forty-seven 
Renins is too well known to need repetition, but the 
loyalty of these retainers (who slew the man that 
caused their lord's death, although they knew that 
this deed called for their immediate end by their own 

[46] 



Will Japanese Retain Good Traits? 

hands) impresses one with new force when he stands 
before the tombs of these men in the Japanese cap- 
ital and sees the profound reverence in which they 
are still held by the people of Japan. 

', What puzzles the foreign observer is: Will this 
passionate loyalty of servant to master survive the 
spedacle of the ingratitude and self-interest which the 
Japanese see in the relation of master and servant 
in most Christian countries? The whole tendency 
of life in other countries than his own is against this 
loyalty, which has been bred in his very marrow. 
How long, without the mainstay of religion, will the 
Japanese cling to this outworn but beautiful relic of 
his old life? And it must be confessed that religion 
is rapidly losing its hold on the men of Japan. Those 
who have been abroad are apt to return home free- 
thinkers, because the spectacle of the praftical work- 
ing of Christianity is not conducive to faith among 
so shrewd a people as the Japanese. Even the ex- 
ample of the foreigners in Japan is an influence that 
the missionaries regard as prejudicial to Christianity. 

\ Another trait of the Japanese which will not be 
improved by contadl with foreigners, and especially 
with Americans, is thoroughness. This trait is seen 
on every hand in Japan. Nothing is built in a slov- 
enly way, whether for private use or for the gov- 
ernment. The artisan never scamps his work. He 
seems to have retained the old mechanic's pride in 
doing everything well which he sets his hand to do. 
This is seen in the carving of many works of art, 
as well as in the building of the ornamental gate- 
ways throughout the empire, that stand as monu- 
ments to the sesthetic sense of the people. Yet the 
whole influence of foreign teaching and example is 
against this thoroughness that is ingrained in the 
Japanese charader. The young people cannot fail 

[47] 



The Critic in the Orient 

to see that it does not pay their elders to expend so 
much time and effort to gain perfedlion, when their 
foreign rivals secure apparently equal if not superior 
results by quick and careless work. It is upon these 
Japanese children that the future of the empire de- 
pends. They are sure to be infeded by these objedk 
lessons in the gospel of selfish and careless work, 
which the labor union leaders in our country have 
preached until it has been accepted by the great 
mass of mechanics. 

\ Another racial quality of the Japanese, which is 
likely to suffer from contad: with foreigners, is his 
politeness. This is innate and not acquired; it does 
not owe any of its force to selfish considerations. 
The traveler in Japan is amazed to see this polite- 
ness among all classes, just as he sees the artistic 
impulse flowering among the children of rough toil- 
ers in the fields. And again the question arises: 
Will the Japanese retain this attractive trait when 
they come into more intimate contad: with the for- 
eigner, who believes in courtesy mainly as a business 
asset rather than as a social virtue? 

So, in summing up one's impressions of Japan, 
there comes this inevitable doubt of the permanence 
of the fine qualities which make the Japanese nation 
to-day so distindt from any other. The Japanese 
may differ from all other races in their power of re- 
sisting the corrupting influences of foreign associa- 
tion, but it is to be feared that the visitor to the 
Mikado's land fifty years from now may not only 
find no Mikado, but none of the peculiarly gracious 
qualities in the Japanese people which to-day set 
them apart from all other nations. 



[48] 




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PLATE V 

Avenue of Cryptomeria to Futaaru Temple, Nikko. 

This Pidture Gives a Good Idea of the Effeftiveness of the 

Tori or Gate, of Black or Red Lacquer or Natural 

Wood, Which Stands at the Entrance 

to Most Parks and Temples 




PLATE VI 

Avenue of Cryptomeria Trees, near Nikko. 

This Splendid Avenue, Lined with Huge Cedar Trees 

from One Hundred and Fifty to Two Hundred 

Feet in Height, Extends for Five Miles 

from Nikko to Imaichi 





PLATE VII 

Great Bronze Torii, Nikko. 

These Torii or Gates Form the Most 

Charafteristic Feature of Japanese Landscapes. 

Are Always of the Same Pattern But 

Infinite in Variety of Decoration 



They 




PLATE VIII 

Stone Lanterns, Kasuga Temple Park, Nara. 

A Remarkable Colledion of Lanterns Which Line 

the Avenue Leading to the Temple. In This 

Park Many Tame Deer Wander, Their 

Horns Being Cut Once a Year 

in Odlober 




PLATE IX 

Religious Procession, Kyoto. 

This Gives a Good Idea of a Familiar Sight in 

all Japanese Cities. Many of the Standards Carried in 

These Processions are Very Beautiful, 

With Silk Streamers of 

Many Colors 




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PLATE XIII 

Japanese Peasant Group by the Roadside. 

These Country People Show Keen Curiosity in 

Regard to the Foreign Tourist but They 

Are Always Courteous 






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PLATE XVI 

Private Garden, Kamakura. 

This Gives a Good Idea of the Arrangement 

of a Japanese Garden. To the Influence of the 

Garden is Ascribed the Japanese Love of 

the Beautiful in Nature and Art 



MANILA, 

TRANSFORMED BY THE 

AMERICANS 



First Impressions of 

Manila and Its PicTUREsguE 

People 



THE bay of Manila is so extensive that the 
steamer appears to be entering a great inland 
sea. The shores are low-lying and it takes 
about an hour before the steamer nears the city, so 
that one can make out the landmarks. To the right, 
as one approaches the city, is Cavite, which Dewey 
took on that historic May day in 1898. The spires 
of many churches are the most conspicuous land- 
marks in Manila, but as the distance lessens a huge 
mass of concrete, the new Manila hotel, looms up 
near the docks. The bay is full of ships and along- 
side the docks are a number of passenger and freight 
steamers. 

' Just as we are able to make out these things, our 
ears catch the strains of a fine band of music and we 
see two launches rapidly nearing the ship. In one 
is a portion of the splendid Constabulary Band, the 
finest in the Orient. In the other launch was the 
special committee of the Manila Merchants' Asso- 
ciation. The band played several stirring airs, every- 
body cheered and waved handkerchiefs and for a 
few minutes it looked as though an impromptu 
Fourth of July celebration had begun. It is difficult 
to describe an American's emotions when he sees the 
Stars and Stripes for the first time in five weeks. 
The most phlegmatic man on the ship danced a war 
dance, women wept, and when the reception com- 



[50 



The Critic in the Orient 

mittee boarded the ship and met the passengers in 
the dining saloon there was great enthusiasm. Plans 
were arranged for crowding into the two days' stay 
all the sightseeing and entertainment possible and 
these plans were carried out, giving a fine proof of 
Manila hospitality. 

Manila differs from most of the Oriental cities 
in the fad: that American enterprise has constructed 
great docks and dredged out the harbor so that the 
largest steamers may anchor alongside the docks. 
In Yokohama, Kobe, Hongkong and other ports 
ships anchor in the bay and passengers and freight 
must be transferred to the shore by launches and 
lighters. Reinforced concrete is now the favorite 
building material of the new Manila. Not only are 
the piles and docks made of this material, but all the 
new warehouses and business buildings as well as 
most of the American and foreign residences are of 
concrete. It is substantial, clean, cool and enduring, 
meeting every requirement of this tropical climate. 
The white ant, which is so destrudive to the ordi- 
nary wooden pile, does not attack it. 

The Pasig river divides Manila into two sections. 
On the south side of the old walled city are the large 
districts of Malate, Ermito and Paco. On the north 
side is the principal retail business street, the Escolta 
and the other business thoroughfares lined with small 
shops, and six large native districts. The Escolta is 
only four blocks long, very narrow, with sidewalks 
barely three feet wide; yet here is done most of the 
foreign retail trade. In a short time a new Escolta 
will be built in the filled distrid, as it would cost too 
much to widen the old street. As a car line runs 
through the Escolta, there is a bad congestion of 
traffic at all times except in the early morning hours. 
The Bridge of Spain is one of the impressive 

[52] 



First Impressions of Manila 
sights of Manila. With its massive arches of gray 
stone, it looks as though it would be able to endure 
for many more centuries. One of the oldest struc- 
tures in the city, it was built originally on pontoons, 
and it was provided with the present arches in 1630. 
Only one earthquake, that of 1 863, damaged it. Then 
two of the middle arches gave way, and these were 
not restored for twelve years. The roadway is wide, 
but it is crowded all day with as pidluresque a pro- 
cession as may be seen in any part of the world. 
The carromata, a light, two-wheeled cart,with hooded 
cover, pulled by a native pony, is the favorite con- 
veyance of the foreigners and the better class of the 
FiHpinos. The driver sits in front, while two may 
ride very comfortably on the back seat. It is a great 
improvement on the Japanese jinrikisha because one 
may compare impressions with a companion. The 
country cart is built something like the carromata 
and will accommodate four people. Hundreds of 
these carts come into Manila every day with small 
stocks of vegetables and fruit for sale at the mar- 
kets. A few vidorias may be seen on the bridge, 
but what causes most of the congestion is the carabao 
cart, hauling the heavy freight. The carabao (pro- 
nounced carabough, with the accent on the last syl- 
lable), is the water buffalo of the Philippines, a slow, 
ungainly beast of burden that proves patient and 
tradable so long as he can enjoy a daily swim. If cut 
off from water the beast becomes irritable, soon gets 
"loco" and is then dangerous, as it will attack men 
or animals and gore them with its sharp horns. The 
carabao has little hair and its nose bears a strong 
resemblance to that of the hippopotamus. Its har- 
ness consists of a neckyoke of wood fastened to the 
thills of the two-wheeled cart. On this cart is fre- 
quently piled two tonsjwhich the carabao pulls easily. 

[53] 



The Critic in the Orient 

Another bridge which has historic interest for 
the American is the San Juan bridge. It is reached 
by the Santa Mesa car line. Here at either end 
were encamped the American and Filipino armed 
forces, and the insurreftion was started by a shot at 
night from the native trenches. The bridge was the 
scene of fierce fighting, which proved disastrous to 
the Filipinos. 

Aside from the bridges and the life along the 
Pasig river, the most interesting part of Manila lies 
within the old walled city. This sedlion is known 
locally as"Intra Muros." It is still surrounded by the 
massive stone wall, which was begun in 159 1 but not 
adtually completed until 1872. The wall was built 
to prote6l the city from free-booters, as Manila, like 
old Panama, offered a tempting prize to pirates. Into 
the wall was built old Fort Santiago, which still 
stands. The wall varies in thickness from three to 
forty feet, and in it were built many chambers used 
as places of confinement and torture. Until six years 
ago a wide moat surrounded the wall, but the stag- 
nant water bred disease and the moat was filled with 
the silt dredged up from the bay. Fort Santiago 
forms the northwest corner of the wall. Its prede- 
cessor was a palisade of bags, built in 1 571, behind 
which the Spaniards defended themselves against the 
warlike native chiefs. In 1590 the stone fort was 
begun. Within it was the court of the military gov- 
ernment. Seven gates were used as entrances to the 
walled city in old Spanish days, the most pidturesque 
being the Real gate, bearing the date of 1780, and 
the Santa Lucia gate, with the inscription of 178 1. 
These gates were closed every night, and some of 
the massive machinery used for this purpose may be 
seen lying near by-a reminder of those good old 
days when the belated traveler camped outside. 

[?4l 



First Impressions of Manila 

In the old walled city are some of the famous 
churches of Manila. The oldest is San Augustin, 
first dedicated in 1571. The present strudlure was 
built two years later, the first having been completely 
destroyed by fire. The enormously thick walls were 
laid so well that they have withstood the severe earth- 
quakes which proved so destrudlive to many other 
churches. In this church are buried Legaspi and 
Salcedo, the explorers, who spread Spanish dominion 
over the Philippines. 

The Church of St. Ignatius is famous for the 
beautifully carved woodwork of the pulpit and the 
interior decorations; that of Santo Domingo is cele- 
brated for its finely carved doors. The greatest shrine 
in the Phillippines is the Cathedral, which fronts on 
Plaza McKinley. This is the fifth building ereded 
on the same site, fire having destroyed the other four. 
The architedlure is Byzantine, and the interior gives 
a wonderful impression of grace and spaciousness. 
Some of the old doors and iron grill-work of the 
ancient cathedrals have been retained. 



[55] 



American 

Work in the Philippine 

Islands 



IT will surprise any American visitor to the Phil- 
ippine Islands to find how much has been ac- 
complished since 1898 to make life better worth 
living for the Filipino as well as for the European 
or the American. Civil government through the 
Philippine Commission has been in adive operation 
for ten years. During this decade what Americans 
have achieved in solving difficult problems of colo- 
nial government is matter for national pride. The 
American method in the Philippines looks to giving 
the native the largest measure of self-government 
of which he is capable. It has not satisfied the Fili- 
pino, because he imagines that he is all ready for 
self-government, but it has done much to lift him 
out of the dead level of peonage in which the Span- 
iard kept him and to open the doors of opportunity 
to young Filipinos with ability and energy. I talked 
with many men in various professions and in many 
kinds of business and all agreed that the American 
system worked wonders in advancing the natives of 
real ability. 

\ Rev. Dr. George W. Wright of Manila, who has 
charge of a large Presbyterian seminary for training 
young Filipinos for the ministry, and who has had 
much experience in teaching, said: "In the old days 
only the sons of the illustrados, or prominent men 
of the noble class, had any chance to secure an edu- 

[56] 




Imperial Gate, Fort Santiago, Manila. 

This is the Main Entrance to the Old Fort, 

Built Into the Massive Wall. This Wall 

Was for Spanish Defense Against 

Warlike Native Cbieii 



American Work in the Philippines 
cation and this education was given in the Catholic 
private schools. With the advent of the Americans 
any boy possessing the faculty of learning quickly 
may get a good education, provided he will work for 
it. I know of one case of a boy who did not even know 
who his parents were. He gained a living by black- 
ing shoes and selling papers. He came to me for aid 
in entering a night school. He learned more rap- 
idly than anyone I ever knew. Soon he came to me 
and wanted a job that would occupy him half a day 
so that he could go to school the other half of the day. 
I got him the job and in a few months he was not 
only perfe6ling himself in English, but reading law. 
Nothing can keep this boy down; in a few years he 
will be a leader among his people. Under the old 
Spanish system he never would have been permitted 
to rise from the low caste in which fortune first 
placed him." 

\ More than a thousand American teachers are 
scattered over the Philippine Islands, and for ten 
years these men and women have been training the 
young of both sexes. Some have proved incompe- 
tent, a few have set a very bad example, but the great 
majority have done work of which any nation might 
be proud. They have not only been teachers of the 
young, but they have been counselors and friends 
of the parents of their pupils. 

\ The work done in a material way in the Philip- 
pines is even more remarkable. Of the first impor- 
tance is the offer of a homestead to every citizen 
from the public lands. So much was paid for the 
friar lands that these are far beyond the reach of any- 
one of ordinary means, but the government has large 
reserves of public land, which only need cultivation 
to make them valuable. Sanitary conditions have 
been enormously improved both in Manila and 

[57] 



The Critic in the Orient 
throughout the islands. In the old days Manila was 
notorious for many deaths from cholera, bubonic 
plague and smallpox. No sanitary regulations were 
enforced and the absence of any provisions for sew- 
age led to fearful pestilences. Now not only has 
Manila an admirable sewerage system, but the peo- 
ple have been taught to observe sanitary regulations, 
with the result that in the suburbs of such a city as 
Manila the homes of common people reveal much 
better conditions than the homes of similar classes 
in Japan. The sewage of Manila is pumped three 
times into large sumps before it is finally dumped 
into the bay a mile from the city. 

The island military police, known as the Con- 
stabulary Guard, has done more to improve condi- 
tions throughout the islands than any other agency. 
The higher officers are drawn from the United States 
regular army, but the captains and lieutenants are 
from civil life, and they are mainly made up of 
young college graduates. These men get their posi- 
tions through the civil service and, though some fail 
to make good, the great majority succeed. Their 
positions demand unusual ability, for they not only 
have charge of companies of native police that re- 
semble the Mexican rurales or the Canadian mounted 
police, but they serve as counselor and friend to all 
the Filipinos in their distridt. In this way their in- 
fluence is frequently greater than that of the school 
teachers. 

All this work and much more has been accom- 
plished by the insular government without calling 
upon the United States for any material help. It 
does not seem to be generally known that the Phil- 
ippine Islands are now self-supporting, and that the 
only expense entailed on the general government is 
a slight increase for maintaining regiments assigned 

[S8] 



American Work in the Philippines 
to the island service and the cost of Corregidor for- 
tifications and other harbor defenses. This has been 
accomplished without excessive taxation. Personal 
property is exempt, while the rate on real estate in 
Manila is only one and one-half per cent, on the 
assessed valuation, and only seven-eights of one per 
cent, in the provinces. The fiscal system has been 
put on a gold basis, thus removing the old fluduat- 
ing silver currency which was a great hardship to 
trade. 



[S9] 



Scenes in 

THE City of Manila and 

Suburbs 



EVERY visitor to Manila in the old days ex- 
hausted his vocabulary in praise of the Lun- 
eta, the old Spanish city's pleasure ground, 
which overlooked the bay and Corregidor Island. 
It was an oval drive, with a bandstand at each end, 
inclosing a pretty grass plot. Here, as evening came 
on, all Manila congregated to hear the band play and 
to meet friends. The Manilan does not walk, so 
the broad drive was filled with several rows of car- 
riages passing slowly around the oval. To-day the 
Luneta remains as it was in the old Spanish days, 
but its chief charm, the seaward view, is gone. This 
is due to the filling in of the harbor front, which has 
left the Luneta a quarter of a mile from the water- 
front. However, a new Luneta has been made below 
the old one, and the broad avenues opened up near 
by give far more space for carriages than before. 
Every evening except Monday the Constabulary 
Band plays on the Luneta, and the scene is almost 
as brilliant as in the old days, as the American Gov- 
ernment officials make it a point to turn out in uni- 
form. Nothing can be imagined more perfeft than 
the evenings in Manila after the heat of the day. 
The air is deliciously soft and a gentle breeze from 
the ocean tempers the heat. 

\The best way to see the native life of Manila is 
to take a street-car ride through the Tondo and 



[60] 



Scenes in Manila and Its Suburbs 

Caloocan distridls, or a launch ride up the Pasig 
river. On the cars one passes through the heart of 
the business distrid, the great Tondo niarket, filled 
with supplies from the surrounding country as well 
as many small articles of native or foreign manufac- 
ture. This car line also passes the Maypajo, the 
largest cockpit in the world, where at regular inter- 
vals the best fighting cocks are pitted against each 
other and the betting is as spirited as on American 
race tracks in the old days. On the return trip by 
these cars one passes by the San Juan bridge, which 
marked the opening of the insurrection; the old Mal- 
acanan Palace, now the residence of Governor-Gen- 
eral Forbes, and the Paco Cemetery, where several 
thousand bodies are buried in the great circular wall 
which surrounds the church. These niches in the 
wall are rented for a certain yearly sum, and in the 
old Spanish days, when this rental was not promptly 
paid by relatives, the corpse was removed and thrown 
with others into a great pit. Recently this ghastly 
pradice has been frowned on by the authorities. 

\The average Manila resident does not pay more 
than fifty dollars in our money for his nipa house. 
The framework is of bamboo, bound together by 
rattan; the roof timbers are of bamboo, while the 
sides of the house and the thatch are made from the 
nipa tree. The sides look like mats. The windows 
are of translucent shell, while the door is of nipa or 
wood. These houses are usually about fifteen feet 
square, with one large room, and are raised about six 
feet from the ground. Under the house is kept the 
live stock. When the family has a horse or cow or 
carabao the house is ten feet from the ground, and 
these animals are stabled underneath. In nearly 
every house or yard may be found a game cock tied 
by the leg to prevent him from roaming and fighting. 

[6 1] 



The Critic in the Orient 

In most of the houses that the cars passed in the 
big native quarter of Tondo, furniture was scanty. 
Usually the family has a large dresser, which is orna- 
mented with cheap pictures, and the walls are fre- 
quently covered with prints in colors. There is no 
furniture, as the Filipino's favorite position is to 
squat on his haunches. In many of the poorest 
houses, however, were gramophones, which are paid 
for in monthly installments of a dollar or two. The 
Filipinos are very fond of music, and the cheap 
gramophones appeal to them strongly. Nearly every 
Filipino plays some instrument by ear, and many 
boys from the country are expert players on the 
guitar or mandolin. On large plantations the hands 
are fond of forming bands and orchestras, and often 
their playing would do credit to professional musi- 
cians. The Constabulary Band, recognized as the 
finest in the Orient, has been drilled by an American 
negro named Loring. 

\ In the Santa Mesa distrid are the houses of 
wealthy Filipinos. These are usually of two stories, 
with the upper story projedling far over the lower, 
and with many ornamental dormer windows, with 
casement sashes of small pieces of translucent shell. 
In Manila the window is provided to keep out the 
midday heat and glare of the sun. At other times 
the windows are slid into the walls, and thus nearly 
the whole side of the house is open to the cool night 
air. Many of these houses are finished in the finest 
hardwoods, and not a few have polished mahogany 
floors. Bamboo and rattan furniture may be seen in 
some of these houses, while in others are dressers 
and wardrobes in the rich native woods. These 
houses are embowered in trees, among which the 
magnolia, acacia and palm are the favorites, with 
banana and pomelo trees heavy with fruit. 

[62] 




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PLATE XX 

On the Malecon Drive, Manila. 

One of the Pifturesque Roads, Lined 

With Feathery Palms, That 

Lead to the Luneta 




PLATE XXI 

View on a Manila Canal. 

This Gives a Good Idea of the Native Nipa 

Huts Along the Banks of the Canal, 

and a Bamboo Foot-bridge 




PLATE XXII 

A Filipino Peasant Girl on the 
Way to Market. She Wears the Native Costume 
With the Enormous Bamboo Hat. The 
Water Jar is Like the Spanish- 
American Olla 




PLATE XXIII 

The Catabao Cart in the Philippines. 

The Carabao or Water Buffalo is the Filipinos' Chief 

Beast of Burden. The Cart is Crude and Heavy, 

With a Home-made Yoke. The Buffalo 

is also Used for Ploughing and 

Other Farm Work 







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HONGKONG, 

CANTON, SINGAPORE 

AND RANGOON 



Hongkong, the 

Greatest British Port in 

THE Orient 



THE entrance to the harbor of Hongkong is 
one of the most impressive in the world. The 
steamer runs along by the mainland for sev- 
eral miles. Then a great island is descried, covered 
with smelting works, huge dockyards, great ware- 
houses and other evidences of commercial adivity. 
This is the lower end of the island of Vidoria, on 
which the city of Hongkong has been built. The 
island was ceded by China to Great Britain in 1842, 
after the conclusion of the opium war. It is separated 
from the mainland of China by an arm of the sea, 
varying from one mile to five miles in width. This 
forms the harbor of Hongkong, one of the most 
spacious and picturesque in the world. It is crowded 
with steamers, ferryboats, Chinese junks with queer- 
shaped sails of yellow matting, sampans, trim steam 
launches and various other craft. As the vessel 
passes beyond the smelting works and the dry docks 
it rounds a point and the beauty of Hongkong is 
revealed. 

The city is built at the foot of a steep hill nearly 
two thousand feet in height. Along the crescent 
harbor front are ranged massive business buildings 
with colonaded fronts and rows of windows. Behind 
the business seftion the hills rise so abruptly that 
many of the streets are seen to be merely rows of 
granite stairs. Still farther back are the homes of 

[65] 



The Critic in the Orient 

Hongkong residents, beautiful stone or brick struc- 
tures, which look out upon the busy harbor. With 
a glass one can make out the cable railroad which 
climbs straight up the mountainside for over one 
thousand feet and then turns sharply to the right 
until the station is reached, about thirteen hundred 
feet above sea level. 

' Hongkong differs radically from Yokohama, 
Tokio, Kobe, Nagasaki or Manila, because of the 
blocks of solid, granite-faced buildings that line its 
water front, each with its rows of Venetian windows, 
recessed in balconies. This is the prevailing archi- 
tecture for hotels, business buildings and residences, 
while dignity is lent to every structure by the enor- 
mous height between stories, the average being from 
fifteen to eighteen feet. This impression of loftiness 
is increased by the use of the French window, which 
extends from the floor almost to the ceiling, all the 
windows being provided with large transoms. 

\ The feature of Hongkong which impresses the 
stranger the most vividly is the great mixture of 
races in the streets. Here for the first time one finds 
the sedan chair, with two or four bearers. It is used 
largely in Hongkong for climbing the steep streets 
which are impossible for the jinrikisha. The bearers 
are low-class coolies from the country, whose rough 
gait makes riding in a chair the nearest approach to 
horseback exercise. The jinrikisha is also largely in 
evidence, but the bearers are a great contrast in their 
rapacious manners to the courteous and smiling Jap- 
anese in all the cities of the Mikado's land. 

, Queen's road, the main business street of Hong- 
kongjfurnishes an extraordinary spedacle at any hour 
of the day. The roadway is lined with shops, while 
the sidewalks, covered by the verandas of the sec- 
ond stories of the buildings, form a virtual arcade, 

[66] 



Greatest British Port in Orient 

proteded from the fierce rays of the sun. These 
shops are mainly designed to catch the eye of the 
foreigner, and they are filled with a remarkable col- 
lection of silks, linens, ivories, carvings and other 
articles that appeal to the American because of the 
skilled labor that has been expended upon them. 
Carvings and embroidery that represent the work of 
months are sold at such low prices as to make one 
marvel how anyone can afford to produce them 
even in this land of cheap living. 

\ The crowd that streams past these shops is even 
more curious than the goods offered for sale. Here 
East and West meet in daily association. The Eng- 
lishman is easily recognized by his air of proprietor- 
ship, although his usual high color is somewhat 
reduced by the climate. He has stamped his per- 
sonality on Hongkong and he has builded here for 
generations to come. The German is liberally rep- 
resented, and old Hongkong residents bewail the 
fa6t that every year sees a larger number of Emperor 
William's subjefts intent on wresting trade from 
the British. Frenchmen and other Europeans pass 
along this Queen's road, and the American tourist 
is in evidence, intent on seeing all the sights as well 
as securing the best bargains from the shopkeepers. 
All these foreigners have modified their garb to suit 
the climate. They wear suits of white linen or pon- 
gee with soft shirts, and the solar topi, or pith hel- 
met, which is a necessity in summer and a great 
comfort at other seasons. The helmet keeps the 
head cool and shelters the nape of the neck, which 
cannot be exposed safely to the sun's rays. Instead 
of giving health as the California sun does, this 
Hongkong sunshine brings heat apoplexy and fever. 
All the Orient is represented by interesting types. 
Here are rich Chinese merchants going by in private 

[67] 



The Critic in the Orient 

chairs, with bearers in handsome silk livery; Parsees 
from Bombay, with skins almost as black as those 
of the American negro; natives of other parts of 
India in their charadteristic dress and their varying 
turbans; Sikh policemen, tall, powerful men, who 
have a lordly walk and who beat and kick the Chi- 
nese chair coolies and rickshaw men when they prove 
too insistent or rapacious; Chinese of all classes, 
from the prosperous merchant to the wretched coolie 
whose prominent ribs show how near he lives to 
adual starvation in this overcrowded land; workmen 
of all kinds, many bearing their tools, and swarms 
of peddlers and vendors of food, crying their wares, 
with scores of children, many of whom lead blind 
beggars. Everywhere is the noise of many people 
shouting lustily, the cries of chair coolies warning 
the passersby to clear the way for their illustrious 
patrons. 

\ The Chinese seem unable to do anything without 
an enormous expenditure of talk and noise. Ordi- 
nary bargaining looks like the beginning of a fierce 
fight. Any trifling accident attracts a great crowd, 
which becomes excited at the slightest provocation. 
It is easy to see from an ordinary walk in this Hong- 
kong street how panic or rage may convert the stolid 
Chinese into a deadly maniac, who will stop at no 
outburst of violence, no atrocity, that will serve to 
wreak his hatred of the foreigner. 

\ Although Hongkong has been Europeanized in 
its main streets, there are quarters of the city only a 
few blocks away from the big hotels and banks which 
give one glimpses of genuine native life. Some of 
these streets are reached by scores of granite steps that 
climb the steep mountainside. These streets are not 
over twelve or fifteen feet wide, and the shops are 
mere holes in the wall, with a frontage of eight or 

[68] 



Greatest British Port in Orient 

ten feet. Yet many of these dingy shops contain 
thousands of dollars' worth of decorated silks and 
linens, artistic carvings, laces, curios and many other 
articles of Chinese manufadure. Unlike the Japa- 
nese, who will follow the tourist to the sidewalk and 
urge him to buy, these Chinese storekeepers show 
no eagerness to make sales. They must be urged 
to display their fine goods, and they cannot be hur- 
ried. The best time to see these native streets is at 
night. Take a chair if the climate overpowers you, 
but walk if you can. Then a night stroll through 
this teeming quarter will always remain in the mem- 
ory. Every one is working hard, as in Japan, for the 
Chinese workday seems endless. All kinds of man- 
ufacture are being carried on here in these narrow lit- 
tle shops; the workers arc generally stripped to the 
waist, wearing only loose short trousers of cheap blue 
or brown cotton, the lamplight gleaming on their 
sweating bodies. Here are goldsmiths beating out 
the jewelry for which Hongkong is famous; next are 
scores of shops in all of which shoes are being made; 
then follow workers in willow-ware and rattan, mak- 
ers of hats, furniture and hundreds of other articles. 
In every block is an eating-house, with rows of na- 
tives squatted on benches, and with large kettles full 
of evil-smelling messes. The crowds in the streets 
vie with the crowds in the stores in the noise that 
they make; the air reeks with the odors of sweating 
men, the smell of unsavory food, the stench of open 
gutters. This panorama of naked bodies, of wild- 
eyed yellow faces drawn with fatigue and heat passes 
before ones' eyes for an hour. Then the senses begin 
to reel and it is time to leave this scene of Oriental 
life that is far lower and more repulsive than the 
most crowded streets in the terrible East Side tene- 
ment quarter of New York on a midsummer night. 

[69] 



The Critic in the Orient 

Hongkong, both in the European and native 
quarters, is built to endure for centuries. Most of 
the houses are of granite or plastered brick. The 
streets are paved with granite slabs. Even the pri- 
vate residences have massive walls and heavy roofs 
of red or black tile; the gardens are screened from 
the street by high walls, with broken glass worked 
into the mortar that forms the coping and with tall 
iron entrance gates. These residences dot the side hill 
above the town. They are built upon terraces, which 
include the family tennis court. The roads wind 
around the mountainside, many of them quarried 
out of solid rock. All the building material of these 
houses had to be carried up the steep mountainside 
by coolies and, until the cable railway was finished, 
the dwellers were borne to their homes at night by 
chair coolies. 

This cable railway carries one nearly to the top 
of the peak back of Hongkong, and from the station 
a short walk brings one to the summit, where a wire- 
less station is used to flash arrivals of vessels to the 
city below. The view from this summit, and from 
the splendid winding road which leads to the Peak 
Hospital, not far away, is one of the finest in the 
world. The harbor, dotted with many ships and 
small boats, the indented coast for a score of miles, 
the bare and forbidding Chinese territory across the 
bay, the big city at the foot of the hill; all these are 
spread out below like a great panorama. 

The British are firmly entrenched at Hongkong. 
Not only have they adlual ownership of Vidloria 
Island, on which Hongkong is built, but they have 
a perpetual lease of a strip of the mainland across 
from the island, extending back for over one hun- 
dred miles. The native city across the bay is Kow- 
loon, and is reached by a short ride on the new 

[7°] 



Greatest British Port in Orient 

railroad which will eventually conned: Hankow with 
Paris. On the barren shore, about a mile from Hong- 
kong, has been founded the European settlement of 
Kowloon City, It comprises a row of large ware- 
houses, or godowns, a big naval vidtualling station 
and coaling depot, large barracks for two regiments 
of Indian infantry and several companies of Indian 
artillery, with many fine quarters for European offi- 
cers. The city in recent years has become a favorite 
residence place for Hongkong business men, as it is 
reached in a few minutes by a good ferry. Near by 
are the great naval docks at Hunghom, extensive 
cement works and the deepest railway cut in the 
world, the material being used to fill in the bay of 
Hunghom. 



[71] 



A Visit to 

Canton in Days of Wild 

Panic 



EVERY traveler who has seen the Orient will tell 
you not to miss Canton, the greatest business 
center of China, the most remarkable city of 
the empire, and among the most interesting cities of 
the world. It is only a little over eighty miles from 
Hongkong, and if one wishes to save time it may be 
reached by a night boat. 

V While in Manila I heard very disturbing reports 
of rioting in Canton and possible bloodshed in the 
contest between the Manchus in control of the army 
and the revolutionists. This rioting followed the as- 
sassination of the Tartar general, who was blown up, 
with a score of his bodyguard, as he was formally 
entering the city by the main south gate. When 
Hongkong was reached these rumors of trouble be- 
came more persistent, and they were given point 
by the arrival every day by boat and train of thou- 
sands of refugees from Canton. Every day the bul- 
letin boards in the Chinese quarter contained dis- 
patches from Canton, around which a swarm of 
excited coolies gathered and discussed the news. One 
night came the news that the Viceroy had acknowl- 
edged the revolutionists and had agreed to surrender 
on the following day. This report was received with 
great enthusiasm, and hundreds of dollars' worth of 
firecrackers were burned to celebrate the success of 
the new national movement. 



[72] 



Canton in Days of Wild Panic 

That night I left Hongkong on the Quong Si, 
one of the Chinese boats that ply between Hong- 
kong and Canton, under the British flag. A half- 
dozen American tourists were also on the boat, 
including several ladies. 

^ The trip up the estuary of the Pearl river that 
leads to Canton was made without incident, and the 
boat anchored in the river opposite the Shameen or 
foreign concession early in the morning, but the pas- 
sengers remained on board until about eight-thirty 
o'clock. The reports that came from the shore were 
not reassuring. Guides who came out in sampans 
said that there was only a forlorn hope of getting 
into the walled city, as nearly all the gates had been 
closed for two days. They also brought the alarm- 
ing news that the Viceroy had reconsidered his deci- 
sion of the previous night and had sent word that 
he proposed to resist by force any effort of the revolu- 
tionists to capture the city. The flag of the revolu- 
tion had also been hauled down and the old familiar 
yellow dragon-flag hoisted in its place. 

\ While waiting for the guide to arrange for chairs 
to take the party through the city, we had a good 
opportunity to study the river life which makes Can- 
ton unique among Chinese cities. Out of the total 
population of over two millions, at least a quarter of 
a million live in boats from birth to death and know 
no other home. Many of these boats are large cargo 
junks which ply up and down the river and bring 
produce to the great city market, but the majority 
are small sampans that house one Chinese family and 
that find constant service in transferring passengers 
and freight from one side of the river to the other, 
as well as to and from the hundreds of steamers that 
call at the port. They have a covered cabin into 
which the family retires at night. 

[73] 



The Critic in the Orient 

These sampans are mainly rowed by women, who 
handle the boats with great skill. A young girl 
usually plies the short oar on the bow, while her 
mother, assisted by the younger children, works the 
large oar or sweep in the stern. The middle of the 
sampan is covered by a bamboo house, and in the 
forward part of this house the family has its kitchen 
fire and all its arrangements for food. The passen- 
ger sits on the after seat near the stern of the boat. 
These boats are scrubbed so that the woodwork 
shines, and the backs of the seats are covered with 
fresh matting. 

Looking out from the steamer one saw at least 
two miles of these small sampans and larger craft 
massed along both shores of the river, which is here 
about a half-mile wide. The foreign concession or 
Shameen is free from these boats. It is really a sand 
spit, surrounded by water, which was made over to 
the foreigners after the opium war. 

North of the Shameen is the new western sub- 
urb of Canton, which has recently been completed 
on European lines. It has a handsome bund, finely 
paved, with substantial buildings facing the river. 
Close up against this bund, and extending down the 
river bank for at least two miles are ranged row on 
row of houseboats. Every few minutes a boat darts 
out from the mass and is pulled to one of the ships 
in the stream. 

Across the river and massed against the shore of 
Honam, the suburb opposite Canton, is another tan- 
gle of sampans, with thousands of adive river folk, 
all shouting and screaming. These yellow thousands 
toiling from break of day to late at night do not 
seem human; yet each boat has its family life. The 
younger children are tied so that they cannot fall 
overboard, and the older ones wear ingenious floats 

[74] 




2 ^ 5'3 3 .j^ 






a.^ " , 3 « 

^ O 3 2- C. " 

o ° o 5' » 



Canton in Days of Wild Panic 

which will buoy them up should they tumble into 
the water. Boys and girls four or five years old 
assist in the working of the boat, while girls of twelve 
or fourteen are experts in handUng the oar and in 
using the long bamboo boat hook that serves to 
carry the small craft out of the tangle of river adtivity. 
\ A type of river steamer which will amaze the Am- 
erican is an old stern-wheeler run by man power. It 
is provided with a treadmill just forward of the big 
stern wheel. Two or three tiers of naked, perspiring 
coolies are working this treadmill, all moving with 
the accuracy and precision of machinery. The irrev- 
erent foreigner calls these the "hotfoot" boats, and 
in the land where a coolie may be hired all day for 
forty cents Mexican or twenty cents in our coin this 
human power is far cheaper than soft coal at five 
dollars a ton. These boats carry freight and pas- 
sengers and they move along at a lively pace. 

^ After an hour spent in study of this strange river 
life I was fortunate enough to go ashore with an 
American missionary whose husband was connedted 
with a large college across the river from Canton. 
She came aboard in a sampan to take ashore two 
ladies from Los Angeles. She invited me to accom- 
pany the party, and as she spoke Chinese fluently 
I was glad to accept her offer. We went ashore 
in a sampan and at once proceeded to visit the west- 
ern suburb. This part of Canton has been built in 
recent years and is somewhat cleaner than the old 
town. It is separated from the Shameen by bridges 
which may be drawn up like an ancient portcullis. 
Here we at once plunged into the thick of native 
life. The streets, not over ten feet wide, were crowded 
with people. 

We passed through streets devoted wholly to 
markets and restaurants, and the spedacle was enough 

[75] 



The Critic in the Orient 

to keep one from ever indulging hereafter in chop^ 
suey. Here were tables spread with the intestines 
of various animals, pork in every form, chickens and 
ducks, roasted and covered with some preparation 
that made them look as though just varnished. Here 
were many strange vegetables and fruits, and here, 
hung against the wall, were row on row of dried rats. 
At a neighboring stall were several small, flat tubs, 
in which live fish swam about, waiting for a customer 
to order them knocked on the head. Then we passed 
into a street of curio shops, but the grill work in 
front was closed and behind could be seen the timid 
proprietors, who evidently did not mean to take any 
chances of having their stores looted by robbers. 
For three or four days the most valuable goods in 
all the Canton stores had been removed as rapidly 
as possible. Thousands of bales of silk and tons of 
rare curios were already safe in the foreign ware- 
houses at the Shameen or had been carried down the 
river to Hongkong. Often we had to flatten our- 
selves against the sides of the street to give passage 
to chairs containing high-class Chinese and their fam- 
ilies, followed by coolies bearing the most valuable 
of their possessions packed in cedar chests. 

At an American hospital we were met by several 
young Englishmen connedled with medical and 
Young Men's Christian Association work. They 
proposed a trip through the old walled city, but they 
refused to take the two ladies, as they said it would 
be dangerous in the excited condition of the peo- 
ple. So we set out, five in number. After a short 
walk we reached one of the gates of the walled city, 
only to find it closed and locked. A short walk 
brought us to a second gate, which was opened read- 
ily by the Chinese guards, armed with a new type 
of German army rifle. The walls of the old city 

[76] 



Canton in Days of Wild Panic 

were fully ten feet thick where we entered, and about 
twenty feet high, made of large slabs of granite. 

'N Once inside the city walls a great surprise awaited 
us. Instead of crowded streets and the hum of trade 
were deserted streets, closed shops and absolute des- 
olation. For blocks the only persons seen were sol- 
diers and refugees making their way to the gates. In 
one fine residence quarter an occasional woman 
peered through the front gates; in other sedions all 
the houses were closed and barred. Soon we reached 
the Buddhist temple, known as the Temple of Hor- 
rors. Around the central courtyard are grouped a 
series of booths, in each of which are wooden figures 
representing the torture of those who commit deadly 
sins. In one booth a victim is being sawed in two; 
in others poor wretches are being garroted, boiled in 
oil, broken on the wheel and subjected to many other 
ingenious tortures. At one end is an elaborate joss- 
house, with a great bronze bell near by. In normal 
conditions this temple is crowded, and true believers 
buy slips of prayers, which they throw into the booths 
to ward off ill luck. 

V The rush of refugees grew greater as we pene- 
trated toward the heart of the city. On the main 
curio street the huge gilded signs hung as if in 
mockery above shops which had been stripped of all 
their treasures. Occasionally a restaurant remained 
open and these were crowded with chair coolies, who 
were waiting to be engaged by some merchant eager 
to escape from the city. Gone was all the life and 
bustle that my companions said made this the most 
remarkable street in Canton. It was like walking 
through a city of the dead, and it bore a striking 
resemblance to San Francisco's business distridt on 
the day of the great fire. At intervals we passed the 
yamens of magistrates, but the guards and attaches 

[77] 



The Critic in the Orient 

were enjoying a vacation, as no court proceedings 
were held. Progress became more and more difficult 
as the rush of refugees increased and returning chair 
coolies clamored for passageway. The latter had 
taken parties to the river boats and were coming 
back for more passengers. As it became evident that 
we could not see the normal life of the city, my com- 
panions finally urged that we return, as they feared 
the gates might be closed against us, so we retraced 
our way, this time taking the main street which led 
to the great south gate. 

Not far from the gate we came on the scene of 
the blowing up of the Tartar general. Seven shops 
on both sides of the street were wrecked by the 
explosion. The heavy fronts were partly intaft, 
but the interiors were a mass of brick and charred 
timbers, for fire followed the explosion. The general 
had waited several months to allow the political ex- 
citement that followed his appointment to subside. 
He felt safe in entering the city with a strong body- 
guard, but not over one hundred yards from the 
gate a bomb was thrown which killed the general 
instantly, mangled a score of his retainers and killed 
over a dozen Chinese bystanders. The revolution- 
ists tried to clear the street so that none of their own 
people should suffer, but they failed because of the 
curiosity of the crowd. 

Near by this place is the old Buddhist water 
clock, which for five hundred years has marked the 
time by the drip of water from a hidden spring. The 
masonry of this water-clock building looks very an- 
cient, and the clock is reached by several long flights 
of granite stairs. 

After viewing the clock we reached the wall and 
passed through the big south gates, which are fully 
six inches thick, of massive iron, studded with large 

[78] 



Canton in Days of Wild Panic 

nails. Outside on the bund were drawn up several 
rapid-fire guns belonging to Admiral Li, the efficient 
head of the Chinese navy at Canton, who also had a 
score of trim little gunboats patrolling the river. 
These boats had rapid-fire guns at bow and stern. 
\ So we came back to the Canton hospital, where 
we had luncheon. After this I made my way back 
to the steamer, to find her crowded with over one 
thousand refugees from the old city, with their be- 
longings. The decks and even the dining saloon 
were choked with these people, and during the two 
hours before the boat sailed at least three hundred 
more passengers were taken on board. We sailed in 
the late afternoon and were followed by four other 
river steamers, carrying in all over six thousand 
refugees. 



[79] 



Singapore 

The Meeting Place of 

Many Races 



OF all the places in the Orient, the most cos- 
mopolitan is Singapore, the gateway to the 
Far East; the one city which everyone en- 
circling the globe is forced to visit, at least for a day. 
Hongkong streets may have seemed to present an 
unparalleled mixture of races; Canton's narrow alleys 
may have appeared strange and exotic; but Singa- 
pore surpasses Honkong in the number and pidlur- 
esqueness of the races represented in its streets, as 
it easily surpasses Canton in strange sights and in 
swarming toilers from many lands that fill the boats 
on its canals and the narrow, crooked streets that at 
night glow with light and resound with the clamor 
of alien tongues. 

Singapore is built on an Island which adjoins the 
extreme end of the Malay Peninsula. It is about 
sixty miles from the equator, and it has a climate 
that varies only a few degrees from seventy during 
the entire year. This heat would not be debilitating 
were it not for the extreme humidity of the atmos- 
phere. To a stranger, especially if he comes from 
the Pacific Coast, the place seems like a Turkish 
bath. The slightest physical exertion makes the 
perspiration stand out in beads on the face. 

Singapore has a population of over three hun- 
dred thousand people; it has a great commercial 
business, which is growing every year; it already has 

[80] 



The Meeting Place of Many Races 

the largest dry dock in the world. Its bund is not 
so imposing as that of Hongkong, but it has more 
public squares and its governriient buildings are far 
more handsome. As Hongkong owes much of its 
splendid architedure and its air of stability to Sir 
Paul Chator, so Singapore owes its spacious ave- 
nues, its fine buildings, its many parks, its interest- 
ing museum and its famous botanical gardens to Sir 
Stamford Raffles, one of the British empire-builders 
who have left indelibly impressed on the Orient 
their genius for founding cities and constructing great 
public enterprises. Yet, Singapore, with far more 
business than Manila, is destitute of a proper sewer 
system, and the streets in its native quarters reek 
with foul odors. 

\The feature of Singapore that first impresses the 
stranger is the variety of races seen in any of the 
streets, and this continues to impress him so long as 
he remains in the city. My stay in Singapore was 
four days, due to the fa6t that it was necessary to 
wait here for the departure of the British West In- 
dia Company's steamer for Rangoon and Calcutta. 
In jinrikishas and pony carts I saw all quarters of 
the town, and my wonder grew every day at the re- 
markable show of costumes presented by the diflfer- 
ent races. One day, late in the afternoon, I sat down 
on a coping of the wall that surrounds a pretty park 
on Orchard road, and in the space of a half hour 
watched the moving show that passed by. At this 
hour all Singapore takes its outing to the Botanical 
Gardens, and one may study the people who have 
leisure and money. 

The favorite rig is still the vidoria drawn by 
high-stepping horses, with coachman and postilion, 
but the automobile is evidently making rapid strides 
in popular favor, despite the fad that the heavy, hu- 

[8i] 



The Critic in the Orient 

mid air makes the odor of gasoline cling to the road- 
way. A high-class Arab, with his keen, intelledtual 
face, rides by with a bright Malay driving the ma- 
chine. Then comes a fat and prosperous-looking 
Parsee in his carriage, followed by a rich Chinese 
merchant arrayed in spotless white, seated in a motor 
car, his family about him, and some relative or ser- 
vant at the wheel. Along moves a rickshaw with an 
East Indian woman, the sun flashing on the heavy 
gold rings in her ears, while a carriage follows with 
a pretty blonde girl with golden hair, seated beside 
her Chinese ayah, or nurse. A score of young Brit- 
ons come next in rickshaws, some carrying tennis 
racquets, and others reading books or the afternoon 
paper. The rickshaws here, unlike those of Japan 
or China, carry two people. They are pulled by 
husky Chinese coolies, who have as remarkable devel- 
opment of the leg muscles as their Japanese brothers, 
with far better chests. In fad:, the average Chinese 
rickshaw coolie of Singapore is a fine physical type, 
and he will draw for hours with little show of suf- 
fering a rickshaw containing two people. The pony 
cart of Singapore is another unique institution. It 
is a four-wheeled cart, seating four people, drawn by 
a pony no larger than the average Shetland. The 
driver sits on a little box in front, and at the end of 
the wagon is a basket in which rests the pony's al- 
lowance of green grass for the day. The pony cart 
is popular with parties of three or four and, as most 
of Singapore's streets are level, the burden on the 
animal is not severe. 

This moving procession of the races goes on until 
eleven-thirty o'clock, the popular dinner hour all 
along the Chinese coast. It is varied by the occa- 
sional appearance of a bullock cart, which has prob- 
ably changed very little in hundreds of years. The 

[82] 



The Meeting Place of Many Races 
bullocks have a pronounced hump at the shoulders, 
and are of the color and size of a Jersey cow. The 
neckyoke is a mere bar of wood fastened to the pole, 
and the cart is heavy and ungainly. Nowhere in 
Singapore does one find coolies straining at huge 
loads as in China and Japan, as this labor is given 
over to bullocks. Here, however, both men and 
women carry heavy burdens on their heads, while 
the Chinese use the pole and baskets, so familiar to 
all Californians. 
\ The Malays and East Indians furnish the most 
pi6turesque feature of all street crowds. The Malays, 
dark of skin, with keen faces, wear the sarong, a skirt 
of bright-colored silk or cotton wrapped about the 
loins and falling almost to the shoe. The sarong is 
scant and reminds one strongly of the hobble-skirt, 
as no Malay is able to take a full stride in it. The 
skirt and jacket of the Malay may vary, but the 
sarong is always of the same style, and the brighter 
the color the more it seems to please the wearer. 
The East Indians are of many kinds. The Sikhs, 
who are the police of Hongkong, here share such 
duty with Tamils from southern India and some 
Chinese. 

No Malay is ever seen in any low, menial em- 
ployment. The Malay is well represented on the 
eledric cars, where he serves usually as conductor 
and sometimes as motorman. He is also an expert 
boatman and fisherman. He is very proud and is 
said to be extremely loyal to foreigners who treat 
him with justice and consideration. The Malay, 
however, can not be depended on for labor on the 
rubber or cocoanut plantations, as he will not work 
unless he can make considerable money. Ordinary 
wages do not appeal to a man in a country where 
eieht cents is the cost of maintenance on rice and 

[83] 



The Critic in the Orient 
fish, with plenty of tea. The Malay is a gentleman, 
even when in reduced circumstances, and he must be 
treated with consideration that would be lost or 
wasted on the ordinary Chinese. 

^^fliQ Chinese occupy a peculiar position in Sing- 
apore. It is the only British crown colony in which 
the Chinese is accorded any equality with white men. 
Here in the early days the Chinese were welcomed 
not only for their ability to do rough pioneer work, 
but because of their commercial ability. From the 
outset they have controlled the trade with their coun- 
trymen in the Malayan States, while at the same 
time they have handled all the produce raised by 
Chinese. They have never done much in the export 
trade, nor have they proved successful in carrying 
on the steamship business, because they can not be 
taught the value of keeping vessels in fine condition 
and of catering to the tastes of the foreign traveling 
public. On the other hand, the great Chinese mer- 
chants of Singapore have amassed large fortunes and 
have built homes which surpass those of rich Euro- 
peans. On Orchard road, which leads to the Botan- 
ical Gardens, are several Chinese residences which 
excite the traveler's wonder, because of the beauty 
of the buildings and grounds and the lavishness of 
ornament and decorations. These merchants, whose 
names are known throughout the Malay States and 
as far as Hongkong and Manila, represent the Chi- 
nese at his best, freed from all restridlions and per- 
mitted to give his commercial genius full play. 



[84] 



Strange Night 

Scenes in the City of 

Singapore 



THE Chinese element in Singapore is so over- 
whelming that it arrests the attention of the 
most careless tourist, but no one appreciates 
the enormous number of the Mongolians in Singa- 
pore until he visits the Chinese and Malay distrids 
at night. With a friend I started out one night about 
eight o'clock. It was the first night in Singapore 
that one could walk with any comfort. We went 
down North Bridge road, one of the main avenues 
on which an eledric car line runs. After walking a 
half-mile we struck off to the right where the lights 
were bright. Just as soon as we left the main avenue 
we began to see life as it is in Singapore after dark. 
The first native street was devoted to small hawkers, 
who lined both sides of the narrow thoroughfare. 
Each had about six feet of space, and each had his 
name and his number as a licensed vender. The 
goods were of every description and of the cheapest 
quality. They had been brought in small boxes, and 
on these sat the Chinese merchant and frequently 
his wife and children. A flare or two from cheap nut 
oil illuminated the scene. 

Passing in front of these stands was a constantly 
moving crowd of Chinese, Malays and East Indians 
of many races, all chaffering and talking at the top 
of their voices. At frequent intervals were street tea 
counters, where food was sold, evidently at very low 

[85] 



The Critic in the Orient 

prices. Ranged along on benches were men eating 
rice and various stews that were taken piping hot 
from kettles resting on charcoal stoves. One old 
Chinese woman had a very condensed cooking appa- 
ratus. Over two small braziers she had two copper 
pots, each divided into four compartments and in 
each of these different food was cooking. 

\ Back of the street peddlers were the regular 
stores, all of which were open and apparently doing 
a good business. As in Hongkong, the Chinese 
workmen labor until ten or eleven o'clock at night, 
even carpenters and basket-makers working a full 
force by the light of gas or eledricity. The recent 
events in China had their reflex here. All the mak- 
ers of shirts and clothing were feverishly busy cut- 
ting up and sewing the new flag of the revolution. 
Long lines of red and blue bunting ran up and down 
these rooms, and each workman was driving his 
machine like mad, turning out a flag every few min- 
utes. The fronts of most of these stores were deco- 
rated with flags of the revolution. 

The most conspicuous places of business on these 
streets were the large restaurants, where hundreds 
of Chinese were eating their chow at small tables. 
The din was terrific, and the lights flashing on the 
naked yellow skins, wet with perspiration, made a 
strange spectacle. Next to these eating houses in 
number were handsomely decorated places in which 
Chinese women plied the most ancient trade known 
to history. Some of these women were very comely, 
but few were finely dressed, as in this quarter cheap- 
ness seemed to be the rule in everything. Around 
some of these places crowds of Chinese gathered and 
exchanged comment apparently on attra6tive new 
arrivals in these resorts of vice. Many of the inmates 
were young girls, fourteen or sixteen years old. 

[86] 



Strange Night Scenes in Singapore 

^ Less numerous than these houses were the opium 
dens, scattered throughout all these streets. These 
haunts of the drug that enslaves were long and nar- 
row rooms, with a central passage and a long, low 
platform on each side. This platform was made of 
fine hardwood, and by constant use shone like old 
mahogany. Ranged along on these platforms wide 
enough for two men, facing each other and using 
a common lamp, were scores of opium smokers. As 
many as fifty men could be accommodated in each of 
these large establishments. The opium was served 
as a sticky mass, and each man rolled some of it on 
a metal pin and cooked it over the lamp. When 
cooked, the ball of opium was thrust into a small 
hole in the bamboo opium pipe. Then the smoker, 
lying on his side, drew the flame of the lamp against 
this opium and the smoke came up through the 
bamboo tube of the pipe and was inhaled. One 
cooking of opium makes never more than three 
whiffs of the pipe, sometimes only two. The effed 
on the novice is very exhilarating, but the seasoned 
smoker is forced to consume more and more of the 
drug to secure the desired effed:. In one of these 
dens we watched a large Chinese prepare his opium. 
He took only two whiffs, but the second one was so 
deep that the smoke made the tears run out of his 
eyes. His companion was so far under the influence 
of the drug that his eyes were glazed and he was 
staring at some vision called up by the powerful 
narcotic. One old Chinese, seeing our interest in 
the spedtacle, shook his head and said: ''Opium very 
bad for Chinaman; make him poor; make him 
weak." Further along in this quarter we came upon 
several huge Chinese restaurants, ablaze with light 
and noisy with music. We were told that dinners 
were being given in honor of revolutionist vidories. 

[87] 



The Critic in the Orient 

"''In all our night ramble through the Chinese and 
Malay quarters of Singapore we saw not a single 
European, yet we met only courteous treatment 
everywhere, and our curiosity was taken as a com- 
pliment. Singapore is well policed by various races, 
among which the Sikhs and Bengali predominate. 
An occasional Malay is met adiing as a police officer, 
but it is evident that such work does not appeal to 
the native of the Straits Settlements. 

On our return to the hotel we crossed a large 
estuary which is spanned by several bridges. Here 
were hundreds of small boats moored to the shore, 
the homes of thousands of river people. This busi- 
ness of transportation on the water is in the hands 
of the Malays, who are most expert boatmen. It is 
a pleasure to watch one of these men handle a huge 
cargo boat. With his large oar he will scull rapidly, 
while his assistant uses a long pole. 

\One of the sights of Singapore is the Botanical 
Gardens, about three and one-half miles from town. 
The route is along Orchard road and Tanglin road, 
two beautiful avenues that are lined with comfortable 
bungalows of Europeans, and magnificent mansions 
of Chinese millionaires. The gardens occupy a com- 
manding position overlooking the surrounding coun- 
try, and they have been laid out with much skill. 
The drives are bordered with ornamental trees from 
all lands. The most beautiful of all the palms is the 
Traveler's tree from Madagascar. It is a palm the 
fronds of which grow up like a regular fan. At a 
little distance it looks like a peacock's tail spread 
to the full extent. It is so light, graceful and feath- 
ery that it satisfies the eye as no other palm does. 
Of other palms there are legion, from the Mountain 
Cabbage palm of the West Indies to endless varie- 
ties from Malay, Madagascar and western Africa. 

[88] 



Characteristic 

Sights in Burma's Largest 

City 



ONE of the charadteristic sights of Rangoon is 
that of the big Siamese elephants piling teak 
in the lumber yards along Rangoon river. 
It is the same sight that Kipling pidured in the lines 
in his perfed ballad, Mandalay, which an English- 
man who knows his Burma well says is "the finest 
ballad in the world, with all the local color wrong." 

These lumber yards are strung along the river, 
but are easily reached by an ele6lric car. Several 
are condudled by Chinese, but the finest yard is in 
charge of the government. At the first Chinese yard 
was the largest elephant in the city, a huge animal 
fifty-five years old, with great tusks admirably fitted 
for lifting large logs. A dozen tourists were grouped 
about the yard in the early morning, for these ele- 
phants are only worked in the morning and evening 
hours, when it is cool. An East Indian coolie was 
mounted on his back, or rather just back of his ears, 
with his legs dangling loose. With his naked feet 
he indicated whether the elephant was to go to the 
right or left, and when he wished to emphasize an 
order he hit the beast a blow upon the head with a 
heavy steel rod. 

Much of the work which this elephant did was 
spe6lacular, as it showed the enormous strength of 
the animal as well as his great intelligence. He took 
up on his tusks a log of teak, the native wood of this 



[89] 



The Critic in the Orient 

country, as hard as hickory and much heavier, and, 
with the aid of his trunk, stood with it at attention 
until every camera fiend had taken his pidure. Then 
his driver made the huge beast move a large log of 
teak from a muddy hole by sheer force of the head 
and neck. The animal dropped almost to his knees, 
and then putting forth all his strength he actually 
pushed the log, which weighed about a ton and one- 
half, through the mud up to the gangplank of the 
saw. Then he piled several huge logs one upon the 
other, to show his skill in this work. 

\ Leaving this yard the party walked about a half- 
mile through trails, with marshy land on each side, 
to the big government timber yard. Here were 
thousands of logs which had been cut far up in the 
teak forests of the interior, dragged through the 
swamps of the Irrawaddy by elephants, then floated 
down the great river to Rangoon. All the logs in 
this yard were marked with a red cross to signify that 
they belonged to the government. Down by the 
river shore, where the ground was so soft that their 
feet sank deep into the slimy mud, were five ele- 
phants engaged in hauling logs up from the river 
to the dry ground near the shore. 

\ The chief obj eft of interest in Rangoon is the 
great Shwe Dagon pagoda, which dominates the 
whole city. Its golden summit may be seen for many 
miles gleaming above dull green masses of foliage. 
This pagoda is the center of the Buddhist faith, as 
it is said to contain veritable relics of Gautama as 
well as of the three Buddhas who came before him. 
Thousands of pilgrims from all parts of Burmah, 
Siam, Cochin-China, Korea, Ceylon and other Ori- 
ental countries visit the pagoda every year and their 
offerings at the various shrines amount to millions 
of dollars. The pagoda differs absolutely from the 

[9°] 



Sights in Burma's Largest City 

temples of Japan and China in form, material and 
the arrangement of lesser shrines; but its impressive- 
ness is greatly injured by the presence of hundreds 
of hucksters, who sell not only curios and souvenirs 
of the pagoda, but food and drink. 

\ The pagoda, which is about two miles from the 
business center of Rangoon, is built upon a mound. 
The circumference is thirteen hundred and fifty-five 
feet and the total height from the base is three hun- 
dred and seventy feet. It is constructed in circular 
style, its concentric rings gradually lessening in size 
until the top is reached. This is surmounted by a 
gilt iron work or"ti" on which little bells are hung. 
This "ti" was a gift from the late king of Burmah, 
who spent a quarter of a million dollars on its dec- 
oration with gold and precious stones. The mound 
on which the pagoda stands is divided into two rect- 
angular terraces. The upper terrace, nine hundred 
feet by six hundred and eighty-five, is one hundred 
and sixty-six feet above the level of the ground. The 
ascent is by three flights of brick stairs, the fourth 
flight at the back being closed to permit of the build- 
ing of fortifications by which the English may defend 
the pagoda in any emergency. The southern or main 
entrance is made conspicuous by two enormous leo- 
gryphs, which are of plastered brick. 

Up these steep stairs the visitor climbs, pestered 
by loathsome beggars and importuned on every hand 
to buy relics, flowers and articles of gold and silver. 
One would fancy he was in a great bazar rather than 
in the entrance hall of the finest monument in the 
world ereded in honor of Buddha. The four chap- 
els ranged around the redtangular terrace are orna- 
mented by figures of the sitting Buddha. Then one 
visits a score of magnificently decorated shrines, in 
which are Buddhas in every variety of position. In 

[91] 



The Critic in the Orient 

one is the reclining Gautama in alabaster, in whose 
honor the pagoda was built. In others are Gautamas 
of brass, ivory, glass, clay and wood. Before many 
of these shrines candles are burning and devotees 
are seated or are praying with their faces bowed to 
the stone pavement. On one side of the platform is 
a row of miniature pagodas, all encrusted with dec- 
oration of gold and precious stones, the gifts of thou- 
sands of pious devotees. Among these shrines are 
many small bells which are rung by worshippers 
when they deposit their offerings, and one great bell 
(the third largest in the world,weighing forty-two and 
one-fourth tons), given by King Tharrawaddy. 

XThe eyes of the visitor are wearied with the 
splendid decoration of the chapels, the gilding, the 
carving, the inlaid glass work. It seems as though 
there was no end to the rows on rows of Buddhas in 
every conceivable position. Interspersed among them 
are tall poles from which float long streamers of bam- 
boo bearing painted historical pidures, including 
those of the capture of the pagoda by the British. 
Thousands crowd these platforms. Some offer gifts 
to various shrines, others say prayer after prayer, still 
others strike bells to give warning to evil spirits that 
they have offered up their petitions to Buddha, others 
hang eagerly on the words of fortune tellers. All buy 
food and drink and the whole place suggests in its 
good cheer a country picnic rather than a pilgrimage 
to the greatest Buddhist shrine in the world. 

When one has left the pagoda he bears the mem- 
ory of magnificent decorations, of vast crowds, but 
of little real reverence. The great golden pagoda it- 
self is the dominating feature in every view of Ran- 
goon, just as the Washington monument dominates 
all other structures in Washington. 

[92] 







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PLATE XXXV 

The Great Shwe Dagon Pagoda at Rangoon. 

The Finest Buddhist Temple in all Indo-China, Containing 

Alleged Relics of Gautama. It is Gilded from Base 

to Summit and May be Seen Forty Miles at Sea 




PLATE XXXVI 

Entrance to the Shwe Dagon Pagoda. 

On Each Side is an Enormous Leogryph, Built of 

Brick and Covered With Plaster. The 

Porch Has a Superbly Carved 

Roof 




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PLATE XL 

Palm Avenue, Royal Lakes, Rangoon. 

This Charadteristic View is From a Pretty Parle in 

Rangoon. It Shows the Summit of the Pagoda 

in the Distance 



INDIA, THE LAND 

OF TEMPLES, PALACES 

AND MONUMENTS 



r 



Calcutta, 

The Most Beautiful of 

Oriental Cities 



CALCUTTA, the great commercial port of north- 
ern India and the former capital of the Em- 
pire, is the most beautiful Oriental city, not 
even excepting Hongkong. Its main claim to this 
distinction is the possession of the famous Maidan 
or Esplanade, which runs along the Hoogly river 
for nearly two miles and which far surpasses the 
Luneta of Manila in pidiuresqueness. The Maidan 
is three-quarters of a mile wide at its beginning and 
it broadens out to one and one-quarter miles in width 
at its lower end. Government House, the residence 
of the Viceroy, is opposite the northern end of the 
Maidan, while at the southern end is Belvedere, the 
headquarters of the Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal. 
With historic Fort William on one side and most 
of the large hotels, the big clubs and the Imperial 
Museum on the other, the Maidan is really the cen- 
ter of all civic life. At the southeast end is the race 
course; not far away is the fine cathedral. Near by 
are the beautiful Eden Gardens (the gift of the sis- 
ters of the great Lord Auckland), which are note- 
worthy for the Burmese pagoda, transported from 
Prome and set up here on the water's edge. It is 
seldom that a city is laid out on such magnificent 
lines as is Calcutta. It reminds one of Washington 
in its picturesque boulevards and avenues, all finely 
shaded with noble mango trees. And it also has the 



[95] 



The Critic in the Orient 

distindion of green turf even in the heat of summer, 
owing to the heavy dews that refresh the grass like 
showers. 

Calcutta is associated in the minds of most read- 
ers with the infamous Black Hole into which one 
hundred and forty-six wretched white people were 
crowded on a hot night of June in 1750 and out of 
which only twenty-three emerged alive on the follow- 
ing morning. The BlackHole was the regimentaljail 
of old Fort William and its site is now marked by 
a pavement of black marble and a tablet adjoining 
the fine postoffice building, while across the street is 
an imposing monument to the memory of the vic- 
tims, whose names are all enumerated. The hole 
was twenty-two by fourteen feet, while it was only 
eighteen feet in height. These prisoners who were 
flung into this little jail were residents of Calcutta 
who fell into the hands of the Nawab of Mursheda- 
bad. Calcutta is also famous as the birthplace of 
Thackeray, a bust of whom ornaments the art gal- 
lery of the Imperial Museum. Scattered about the 
Maidan are statues of a dozen men whose deeds 
have shed luster on English arms or diplomacy. 

Calcutta, as the first city of India that I had seen, 
impressed me very strongly, although the native life 
has been colored somewhat by contact with British 
and other Europeans. Here, for the first time, one 
sees ninety-nine out of one hundred people in the 
streets wearing turbans. Here also the women mingle 
freely in the streets, wearing long robes which they 
wind dexterously about their bodies, leaving the 
lower legs and the right arm bare. A few cover the 
face, but the great majority leave it exposed. Many 
are hideously disfigured by large nose rings, while 
others have small rings or jewels set in one nostril. 
Nearly every woman wears bracelets on arms and 

[96] 



Most Beautiful Oriental City 

wrists, heavy anklets and, in many cases, massive 
gold or silver rings on the big toes. In some cases 
what look like heavy necklaces are wound several 
times around the ankles. It is the custom of the 
lower and middle classes not to put their savings in 
a bank, but to melt down the coin and make it into 
bracelets or other ornaments, which are worn by 
their women. Here in Calcutta also one sees for the 
first time hundreds of men and women wearing the 
marks of their caste on their foreheads, either painted 
in red or marked in white with the ash of cow dung. 

Although the main streets of Calcutta are dis- 
tindlly European, a walk of a few blocks in any di- 
redHon from the main business sedlion will bring 
you into the native or the Chinese quarter, where 
the streets are narrow, the houses low between stor- 
ies and the shops mere holes in the wall, with only 
a door for ventilation. In one quarter every store 
is kept by a Chinese and here a large amount of 
manufacturing is done. In other quarters natives 
are carrying on all kinds of manufadure, in the same 
primitive way that they worked two thousand years 
ago. The carpenter uses tools that are very much 
like those in an American boy's box of toy tools; 
the shoemaker does all the work of turning out a 
finished shoe from the hide of leather on his wall. 
Outside these stores in the street the most common 
beast of burden is a small bullock of the size and 
color of a Jersey cow. These little animals pull 
enormous loads, and they are so clever that when 
they see an eledric car approaching they will start 
on the run and clear the track. 

Many of the houses in the native quarter of Cal- 
cutta are built of adobe, with earthen tiles, which 
make them bear a strong resemblance to the adobe 
dwellings of the Spanish-Californians before the 

[97] 



The Critic in the Orient 

American occupation. In many cases very little 
straw is used in this adobe, for the walls have fre- 
quently crumbled away under the heavy rains of 
winter. Other houses are built of brick, faced with 
plaster, which is either painted or whitewashed. 

What impresses any visitor is the squalor and 
the wretchedness of these homes of India's poor. 
The clothing of a whole family is not worth one 
American dollar, while about ten cents in our money 
will feed a family of four. The houses have no fur- 
niture, except a bed of the most primitive pattern, 
made of latticed reeds; the smoke from the cooking 
fire goes up through the roof or else finds its way 
out the open door; seldom are there any windows, 
all the air coming in at the open door; the floor of 
the house is of dirt and on this squat father and 
mother and the children, with the family goat. In 
the small shops work is carried on seven days in the 
week until nine or ten o'clock at night, with an hour 
for lunch and siesta at midday. The hopelessness 
of the lot of the Hindoo (who is bound by rigid 
caste rules to follow in the footsteps of his father) 
can never be appreciated until one has seen him here 
in his native land. 

For two hours I watched scores of natives taking 
a wash at the large, free bathing ghat near the pon- 
toon bridge. On the river front is a restaurant, and 
back of this steps lead down to a spacious platform 
on the level of the river. A score of men and boys 
and one woman were taking a bath in the dirty 
water, which was thick with mud washed up by pass- , 
ing steamers. A few of these bathers had rented 
towels from an office on the stairs, but the great 
majority simply rubbed themselves with their hands 
and then dried in the sun. All washed their faces in 
the dirty water and rinsed their mouths with it. The 

[98] 



Most Beautiful Oriental City 

men took off their loin clothes and washed these 
out, then wrapped them about their bodies and came 
out dripping water. The lone woman was very fat. 
She waded into the water and when she came out 
her thin robe clung to her massive form revealing 
all its curves. She calmly took a seat on the stairs 
and proceeded to massage her head. 

The most interesting place near Calcutta is the 
Royal Botanical Gardens, situated on the opposite 
side of the river and about six miles from town. 
These gardens were laid out in 1786 and they vie 
with the botanic gardens at Singapore in the variety 
of trees and shrubs from all parts of the tropics. 
Here is the great banyan tree which covers one thou- 
sand square feet and is one hundred and forty-two 
years old. At a height of five and one-half feet from 
the ground the circumference of the main trunk is 
fifty-one feet; the height is eighty-five feet, while it 
has five hundred and seventy aerial roots, which 
have adually taken root in the ground. The tree 
at a little distance looks like a small grove. 

The Imperial Museum at Calcutta is well worth 
a couple of hours, for it contains one of the finest 
colledlions of antiquities in the Orient. The museum 
is housed in an enormous building facing the Mai- 
dan, which has a frontage of three hundred feet and 
a depth of two hundred and seventy feet. In the 
ethnological gallery are arranged figures of^all the 
native races of India with their costumes; agricultural 
implements, fishing and hunting appliances, models 
of Indian village life, specimens of ancient and mod- 
ern weapons and many other exhibits. Another room 
that will repay study is a gallery containing old steel 
and wood engravings of the great charadters in the 
mutiny, with busts of Clive, Havelock, Outram and 
Nicholson, and with a life-size bust of Thackeray. 

[99] 



Bathing 

AND Burning the Dead at 

Benares 



IT is estimated that one million pilgrims visit the 
sacred city of Benares every year, and it is these 
pilgrims that furnish the largest income which 
the city receives from any source. Here are the most 
holy shrines of Buddhism; here Vishnu and Siva 
have their strongholds, and here must come Hindoos 
from all parts of India to bathe in the sacred waters 
of the Ganges and to offer up prayers at the many 
holy shrines in the city's temples. 

Benares is sacred because here Buddha first made 
his residence. The place that he seledied was ancient 
Sarnath, six miles from Benares, which is now a heap 
of ruins, in which British government experts are 
delving for remains of the great city that was founded 
six centuries before the Christian era. At Sarnath 
Buddha built a great temple and founded a school 
from which his disciples spread to all parts of India. 
But after 750 A.D. Buddhism disappeared gradually 
from India, and Hindooism took its place. The fine 
temples that now line the Ganges for three miles were 
built by Maratha princes in the seventeenth century. 
They also built the scores of bathing ghats that now 
furnish one of the most piduresque spedacles that 
the world affords. A ghat in Hindustani is a stone 
stairway that leads down to the water, and Benares 
has a succession of these magnificent stairways lead- 
ing down to the Ganges, overlooked by palaces of 

[100] 




Hindoos Bathing in the Ganges at Benares. 

This is a View of the Dasaswamedh Ghat, the Most 

Popular Bathing Place in the Sacred City. Note 

the Holy Men Under the Umbrellas, Who 

Take Tribute of All Bathers 



Bathing and Burning the Dead 

many Maharajas and temples built by rulers and 
priests. No sight more splendid could be conceived 
than that of these domes and minarets flashing in 
the rays of the early morning sun while thousands 
of devout believers crowd the bathing ghats and 
offer prayers to Vishnu, after they have bathed in 
the waters of the Ganges; and mourning relatives 
burn the bodies of their dead after these have had the 
sacred water poured over their faces. 

The visitor who wishes to see the pious Hindoos 
bathe in the Ganges goes to the river in the early 
morning soon after the sun has risen. He descends 
one of the large ghats and takes a boat, in which he 
may be rowed down the river past the bathing ghats 
and the one ghat where the dead are burned. The 
scene is one that will never be forgotten. Against 
the clear sky is outlined a succession of domes and 
spires that mark the position of a score of sacred 
shrines, with two slender minarets that rise from the 
mosque built by the great Moslem Emperor, Au- 
runzeb. The sunlight flashes on these domes and 
spires and it lights up thousands of bathing floats 
and stands that line the muddy banks of the river. 
The floats are dotted with hundreds of bathers and 
the number of these increases every few minutes. 
They come by hundreds down the great stone stair- 
ways to their favorite bathing places, where, after a 
thorough bath, they may be shaved or massaged or 
may listen to the expounding of the Hindoo sacred 
books by a learned Brahmin sitting in the shade 
of a huge umbrella. A charaderistic feature of this 
hillside is the number of these large umbrellas,each of 
which marks the place of a priest or a holy man who 
has done some marvels of penance that give him a 
strong hold on the superstitious natives and induce 
them to pay him well for prayers or a sacred talisman. 

[lOl] 



The Critic in the Orient 

With my boat moored near the bank and diredly 
opposite the Manikarnika ghat, the favorite place on 
the river, I watched the stream of bathers for nearly 
an hour. The fanatical devotion that will induce a 
reasonable human being to bathe in the waters of the 
Ganges seems incredible to anyone from the West- 
ern World. The water of the sacred river is here of 
the consistency of pea soup. The city's sewer pipes 
empty into the Ganges just above the bathing ghats, 
and the current carries this filth diredtly to the place 
which the Hindoos have seledled for their rites. The 
water is not only muddy and unclean, but it offends 
the nose. Yet Hindoos of good family bathe here 
side by side with the poverty stricken. They use the 
mud of the Ganges in lieu of soap; they scrub their 
bodies thoroughly, and then they adually take this 
foul-smelling water in their mouths and clean their 
teeth with it. This creed of Buddha is a pure democ- 
racy, for there is no distindtion of class in bathing. 
Women bathe by the side of men, although they 
remain covered with the gauze-like garments that 
are a sop to modesty. 

The Manikarnika ghat is the most piduresque 
of all these bathing places along the Ganges, as the 
long flight of stone steps is in good preservation and 
the background of temples and palaces satisfies the 
eye. The river front for thirty feet is densely crowded 
with bathers who stand on small floats or go into 
the shallow water. With a Western crowd so dense 
as this there would be infringments of individual 
rights that would lead to quarrels and fights, but the 
Hindoo is slow to anger, and, like the Japanese, he 
has great courtesy for his fellows. Hundreds bathed 
at the ghat while I watched them and no trouble 
ensued. Nothing could be more striking, nothing 
more Oriental than the pidure of scores of bathers, 

[102] 



Bathing and Burning the Dead 

in bright-hued garments, moving up and down these 
long flights of massive steps. In the background 
were a half-dozen temples, the most noteworthy of 
which is the red-domed temple of the Rajah of 
Amethi, whose beautiful palace overlooks this scene. 
Near the water is a curious leaning temple, whose 
foundations were evidently unsettled by the severe 
earthquake which destroyed several temples farther 
down the river. 

The busiest men on these bathing ghats are the 
Hindoo priests, who reap a harvest from the hun- 
dreds of pilgrims who visit the ghats during the day. 
These priests cannot be escaped by the poorest Hin- 
doo. They levy toll from every one who descends 
these long flights of stairs. One fellow I watched as 
he sat under his great umbrella. He had his sacred 
books spread before him, but he was given no leis- 
ure for reading them, as a constant stream of clients 
passed before him. Some of these were regular daily 
visitors from Benares, who pay a certain rate every 
week or every month, according to their financial 
standing. Others were pilgrims who, in their enthu- 
siasm over the sacred Ganges (which they had trav- 
eled hundreds of miles to bathe in), were not care- 
ful in regard to their fees. Others were mourning 
relatives who applied for prayers for the corpse which 
they had brought to the waterside, and still others 
demanded hurried prayers for the dying, whose last 
breath would be drawn by the bank of the sacred 
river. Incidentally the priests sold charms and amu- 
lets guaranteed to bring good fortune. Most of the 
payments were in copper pice, four of which make 
one of our cents, but many of these priests had great 
heaps of this coin in front of them, showing that 
though India may be suffering from a bad harvest 
the faker may always feed on the fat of the land. 

[103] 



The Critic in the Orient 

The spcdtacle, however, which stamps Benares 
upon the memory is the burning of the dead at a ghat 
by the Ganges, This ghat is reserved exclusively for 
the cremation of Hindoo dead. No Mussulman can 
use it. It was about eight o'clock in the morning 
when my boat reached this burning ghat. Already one 
body had been placed on a funeral pyre of wood. 
The guide said this body was that of a poor man who 
had no relatives or friends, as the place where the 
relatives sit until the cremation is complete was 
empty. Soon, however, two men came rushing down 
the stone steps with a corpse strapped to a bamboo 
stretcher. The body was that of a woman, dressed 
in red garments, which signified that she was a mar- 
ried woman. Unmarried women are arrayed in yel- 
low and other colors, while men must be content 
with white. The stretcher-bearers placed their bur- 
den with its feet in the Ganges and then went in 
search of wood which is purchased from a dealer. 
Soon they had a supply, which they piled up in the 
form of a bier, and on this they placed the woman's 
corpse. Then one of the men, who, the guide said, 
was the dead woman's husband, with tears streaming 
from his eyes, bore some of the water of the Ganges 
to the bier, exposed the face of the dead and poured 
the sacred water upon her mouth and her eyes. Then 
while his companion piled wood above the body the 
husband sought the low-caste Hindoos who sell fire 
for burning the body. He soon returned with sev- 
eral large bundles of coarse straw, one of which was 
smoking. Seven times the husband passed around 
the bier with the smoking straw before he applied the 
flame to the wood. The fire licked greedily at the 
wood, and soon the flames had reached the body. 
Then the husband and his friend repaired to a stand 
near by, from which they watched the cremation. 

[104] 



Bathing and Burning the Dead 

Meanwhile two other bodies had been rushed 
down to the water's edge. One was evidently that of 
a wealthy womanjdressed in yellow silk and borne by 
two richly garbed attendants. The other was that of 
an old man, attended by his son. The latter was very 
speedy in securing wood and in building a funeral 
pyre. Soon the old man's corpse was stretched on 
the bier and the son was applying the torch. He was 
a good-looking young fellow, dressed in the clean, 
white garments of mourning and freshly shaved for 
the funeral ceremonies. While he was burning the 
body of his father another corpse of a man was rushed 
down to the river's edge and placed upon a bier. 
This body was fearfully emaciated, and when the 
two attendants raised it in its white shroud, one arm 
that hung down limp was not larger than that of a 
healthy five-year-old boy, while the legs were mere 
skin and bones. It was an ugly sight to see the 
Ganges water poured over the face of this corpse, 
which was set in a ghastly grin with wide-open eyes. 
The man had evidently died while he was being hur- 
ried to the burning ghat, as the Hindoos believe that 
it is evil for one to die in the house. Hence most of 
the corpses have staring eyes, as they breathed their 
last on the way to the river. 

No solemnity marks this cremation by the river's 
edge. The relatives who bring down the body hag- 
gle over the price of the wood and try to cheapen 
the sum demanded by the low-caste man for fire for 
the burning. The greed of the priest who performs 
the last rite and who prepares the relatives for the 
cremation is an unlovely sight. All about the burn- 
ing ghat where the poor dead are being reduced to 
ashes hundreds are bathing or washing their clothes. 
The speftacle that so profoundly impresses a stran- 
ger is to them so common as to excite no interest. 

[105] 



lucknow and 

Cawnpore, Cities of 

The Mutiny 



IucKNOW and Cawnpore are the two cities of India 
that are most closely associated in the minds 
^ of most readers with the great mutiny. The 
one recalls the most heroic defense in the history of 
any country; the other recalls the most piteous trag- 
edy in the long record of suffering and death scored 
against the Sepoys. The British government in both 
of these cities has raised memorials to the men who 
gave their lives in defending them and, though the 
art is inferior in both, the story is so full of genuine 
courage, loyalty, devotion and self-sacrifice that it 
will always find eager readers. So the pilgrims to 
these shrines of the mutiny cannot fail to be touched 
by the relics of the men and women who showed 
heroism of the highest order. When one goes through 
the rooms in the ruined Residency at Lucknow he 
feels again the thrill with which he first read of the 
splendid defense made by Sir Henry Lawrence and 
of the Scotch girl who declared she heard the pipes 
of the Campbells a day before they aftually broke 
on the ears of the beleaguered garrison. And when 
one stands in front of the site of the old well at Cawn- 
pore, into which the bleeding bodies of the butchered 
women and children of the garrison were thrown, 
the tears come to his eyes over the terrible fate of 
these poor vidims of the cruelty of Nana Sahib. 
The sight of these Indian cities also makes one 



[1 06] 



Two Cities of the Mutiny 

appreciate more fully the tremendous odds against 
which this mere handful of English men and women 
contended. 

Lucknow is the fifth city in size in the Indian 
Empire. It is reached by a six hours' ride from 
Benares which is interesting, as the railroad runs 
through a good farming country, in which many of 
the original trees have been left. Lucknow at the 
outbreak of the mutiny was fortunate in the posses- 
sion of one of the ablest army commanders in the 
Indian service. Sir Henry Lawrence, when he saw 
that mutiny was imminent, gathered a large supply 
of stores and ammunition in the Residency at Luck- 
now. When the siege began Lawrence found himself 
in a well-fortified place, with large supplies. About 
one thousand refugees were in the Residency and the 
safety of these people was due largely to the massive 
walls of the building and to the skill and courage with 
which the defense was handled. In reading the story 
of this siege of five months, from June to Novem- 
ber, it seems incredible that a small garrison could 
withstand so constant a bombardment of heavy guns 
and so harassing a fire of small arms; but when you 
go through the Residency the reason is obvious. 
Here are the ruins of a building erected by an old 
Arab chief during the Mohammedan rule in Luck- 
now. The walls are from three to five feet in thick- 
ness, of a kind of flat, red brick like the modern tile. 
When laid up well in good mortar such walls are as 
solid as though built of stone. What added to the 
safety of the building was the great underground 
apartments, built originally for summer quarters for 
the old Moslem's harem, but used during the siege 
as a retreat for the women and children. So well 
prote(5ted were these rooms that only one shell ever 
penetrated them and this shot did no damage. The 

[107] 



The Critic in the Orient 

building reveals traces of the heavy fire to which it 
was subjeded, but in no case were the walls broken 
down. 

The story of the siege of Lucknow has been told 
by poets and prose writers for over a half century, 
but the theme is still full of interest. Tennyson dealt 
with it in a ballad that is full of fire, each verse end- 
ing with the spirited refrain: 

And ever upon the topmost roof the banner of England blew. 
All that it is necessary to do here is to refresh 
the reader's memory with the salient events. The 
besieged were admirably handled by competent offi- 
cers and they beat off repeated attacks by the 
mutineers (who outnumbered them more than one 
hundred to one). Lawrence was fatally wounded on 
July the second and died two days later. In Sep- 
tember General Havelock, after desperate fighting, 
made his way into Lucknow, but his force was so 
small that only fifteen hundred men were added to 
the garrison. It was not until November the seven- 
teenth that the garrison was finally relieved by the 
union of forces under Havelock and Outram and 
Sir Colin Campbell. Never in the history of warfare 
has a garrison had to endure greater hardships than 
that of Lucknow. Incessant attacks by night and 
day kept the small force worn out by constant guard 
duty and, to add to their miseries, intense heat was 
made more merciless by swarms of flies. When one 
bears in mind that the Indian summer brings heat 
of from one hundred and ten to one hundred and 
forty degrees it may be seen how great was the cour- 
age of the garrison that could fight bravely and cheer- 
fully under such heavy odds. The memorial tablets 
at Lucknow, Delhi, Cawnpore and other places bear 
witness to this heroism of the British soldier during 
the mutiny, but you do not fully appreciate this 

[108] 



Two Cities of the Mutiny 

splendid courage until you see the country and feel 
the power of its sun. 

Cawnpore, which is only three hours' ride from 
Lucknow, is another city of India that recalls the 
saddest tragedy of the mutiny. Here it was that bad 
judgment of the general in charge led to great suf- 
fering and the final butchery of all except a few of 
the residents. Sir Hugh Wheeler, a veteran officer, 
wisely doubted the fidelity of the Sepoys and de- 
cided to establish a place where he could store sup- 
plies and assure a safe asylum for the women and chil- 
dren; but, instead of seledting the magazine, which 
was on the river and had strong walls, he adually 
went down two miles in a level plain and threw up 
earth entrenchments. This he did because he said 
he feared to excite the suspicion of the Sepoys and 
thus incite them to revolt. The result was disastrous, 
for the earth walls that he raised furnished poor pro- 
tedtion and the place was raked by the native artil- 
lery and small arms from every point of the compass. 
A worse place to defend could not have been chosen, 
but the twenty officers and two hundred men held 
it against a horde of mutinous natives for twenty 
days of blazing heat. The only water for the little 
garrison was obtained under severe fire of the enemy 
from a well sixty feet deep. 

Finally, when the supply of provisions was nearly 
exhausted, General Wheeler agreed to surrender to 
the Nana Sahib, provided the men were allowed to 
carry arms and ammunition and boats were furnished 
for safe condudt down the river. Of course, the 
Nana accepted these terms, but it seems incredible 
that a veteran army officer should have trusted the 
lives of women and children to Sepoys who were as 
cruel as our own Apaches. The little garrison, with 
the wounded, the women and the children, was es- 

[109] 



The Critic in the Orient 

corted down to the river and placed on barges. But 
when the order was given to push off, the treacher- 
ous Sepoys grounded the boats in the mud and the 
gunners of Nana Sahib opened fire on the barges. 
The grape shot set fire to the matting of the barges 
and many of the wounded were smothered. One 
boat escaped down the river, but the survivors were 
captured after several days of hardship, the men mur- 
dered and the women and children brought back to 
Cawnpore. The men in the other boats who sur- 
vived were shot, but one hundred and twenty-five 
women and children were returned to Cawnpore as 
prisoners. They spent seven anxious days and then 
when Nana Sahib saw he could not hold Cawnpore 
any longer he ordered the Sepoys to shoot the 
English women and children. To the credit of these 
mutineers they refused to obey orders and fired into 
the ceiling of the wretched rooms where the prison- 
ers were lodged. Then Nana Sahib sent for five 
butchers and these men, with their long knives, 
murdered the helpless vidlims of this monster of 
cruelty. On the following morning the bodies of 
dead and dying were cast into the well at Cawnpore. 
On the site of this well has been raised a costly 
memorial surmounted by a marble angel of the res- 
urre6lion. The design is not impressive, but no one 
can see it without pity for the unfortunates who were 
delivered into the hands of the most atrocious char- 
ader of modern times. The Memorial Church at 
Cawnpore, which cost one hundred thousand dollars, 
contains a series of tablets to those who fell in the 
mutiny. 



[no] 



The Taj Mahal, 

The World's Loveliest 

Building 



A GRA is chiefly noteworthy for the Taj Mahal, 
/\ which is acknowledged to be the most beauti- 
X. JLful building in the world; though the city 
would be worthy of a visit because of the many splen- 
did mosques and palaces built by the great Mogul 
emperors and others. In fad:, Agra was the capital of 
the Mohammedan empire in north India until Au- 
rungzeb moved it permanently to Delhi; hence the 
city is rich in specimens of the best Moslem work 
in forts, palaces, mosques and tombs. 

Agra has about two hundred thousand popula- 
tion. It is on the Jumna river and is almost equally 
distant from Calcutta and Bombay, eight hundred 
and forty-two miles from the former and eight hun- 
dred and forty-nine miles from the latter. It will 
impress any traveler by its cleanliness when compared 
with Calcutta, Benares or Lucknow. The land seems 
to be more fertile than that around any of these three 
cities and the standard of living higher. The shops 
are clean and bright and a specialty is made of gold 
and silver embroidery and imitation of the old Mo- 
hammedan inlay work in marble. Most of the fine 
Moslem architedure is found inside the ancient 
fort, which, with its massive wall, is in a good state of 
preservation. 

The Taj Mahal may be seen many times with- 
out losing any of its charm. It is reached by a short 

[III] 



The Critic in the Orient 

drive from the city and its beautiful dome and min- 
arets may be seen from many parts of Agra and its 
suburbs. This tomb, built of white marble, was ereded 
by Shah Jehan, the chief builder among the Mogul 
Emperors of India, in memory of his favorite wife, 
Arjmand Banu. She married Shah Jehan in 1615 
and died fourteen years after, as she was giving birth 
to her eighth child. Shah Jehan, who had already 
built many fine palaces and mosques, determined to 
perpetuate her memory for all time by ereding the 
finest tomb in the world. So he planned the Taj, 
which required twenty-two years and twenty million 
dollars to build; but so well was the work done that 
nearly three hundred years have left little trace on 
on its walls or its splendid decorations. 

This Mogul despot, who knew many women, 
spent an imperial fortune in fashioning this noblest 
memorial to love ever built by the hand of man. 
Incidentally he probably sacrificed twenty thousand 
coolies, for he built the Taj by forced labor, the same 
kind that reared the pyramids and carved the sphinx. 
All the material was brought from great distances. 
The white marble came from Jeypore and was hauled 
in bullock carts or carried by elephants; the jasper 
came from the Punjab, the jade from China and the 
precious stones from many parts of Central Asia, 
from Thibet to Arabia. 

The Emperor summoned the best architefts and 
workers in precious stones of his time and asked 
them for designs. It is evident that many hands 
united in the plans of the building, but history gives 
the credit for the main design to a Persian. An Ital- 
ian architedt lent aid in the ornamentation and three 
inlaid flowers are shown to-day as specimens of his 
work. The building itself is only a shadow of its 
former magnificence— for the many alien conquerors 

[112] 



The World's Loveliest Building 

of India have despoiled in it in succession, taking 
away the solid silver gates, the diamonds, rubies, sap- 
phires and other precious stones from the flower 
decorations, and even the gold and silver from the 
mosaic work. All the precious stones looted by van- 
dal hands have been restored by imitations, which 
closely resemble the priceless originals. Restorations 
have also been made where the marble has been 
defaced or broken. 

The Taj stands in the midst of a great garden, 
laid out with so much skill that from any part of its 
many beautiful walks fine views may be had of the 
dome and the minarets. This garden is planted to 
many tropical trees and flowering shrubs whose foli- 
age brings out in high relief the beauty of the flawless 
marble tomb. The main gateway of the garden, 
built of red sandstone, would be regarded as a splen- 
did work of art were it not for the superior beauty 
of the tomb itself. The gate is inlaid in white marble 
with inscriptions from the Koran, and it is sur- 
mounted by twenty little marble cupolas. 

Once inside the gate the beauty and the majesty of 
the Taj strike one like a physical blow. Simple as 
is the design, so perfedly has it been wrought out 
that the building gives the impression of the last 
word in delicate and unique ornamentation. The 
white marble base on which the building rests is 
three hundred and thirteen feet square and rises eight- 
een feet from the ground. The tomb itself is one 
hundred and eighty-six feet square, with a dome 
that rises two hundred and twenty feet above the 
base. At each corner of the base is a graceful min- 
aret of white marble one hundred and thirty-seven 
feet high. Although no color is used on the ex- 
terior, the decoration is so rich as to prevent all 
monotony. 

["3] 



The Critic in the Orient 

In every detail the Taj satisfies the eye, with the 
single exception of the work on the minarets. The 
squares of marble that cover these minarets are laid 
in dark-colored mortar which brings out strongly 
each stone. It would have lent more softness to these 
minarets had the individual stones not been revealed, 
an effedt that could have been secured by using 
white mortar. When the shades of evening fall these 
minarets are far more beautiful than by day, as they 
are softened by the wiping out of the lines about the 
stones. Under the strong light of the noonday sun 
the marble that covers the dome shows various shades 
ranging from light gray to pearly white, but by the 
soft evening light all these colors are merged and 
the dome looks like a huge soap bubble resting light 
as foam on the body of the tomb. 

A front photograph of the Taj gives a good idea 
of its effed:. Standing at the portal of the main 
entrance one gets the superb effedl of the marble path- 
way that borders the two canals in which the build- 
ing is mirrored. Midway across this pathway is a 
broad, raised marble platform, with a central foun- 
tain, from which the best view of the building may 
be secured. The path on each side from this plat- 
form to the main stairway is bordered by a row of 
cypress and back of these are great mango trees at 
least twenty feet high. These should be removed 
and smaller trees substituted, as they interfere seri- 
ously with a perfed: view of the tomb. 

From this platform the eye rests on the Taj with 
a sense of perfed satisfadion that is given by no 
other building I have ever seen. The very simplic- 
ity of the design aids in this effed. It seems well 
nigh impossible that a mere tomb of white marble 
should convey so vivid an impression of complete- 
ness and majesty, yet at the same time that every 

["4] 




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« g-o 
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Crrr>0 (_,f> » —Id 



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The World's Loveliest Building 
detail should suggest lightness and delicacy. The 
little cupolas below the dome as well as the pinnacles 
of the minarets add to this effedt of airy grace. 

When one ascends the steps to the main door he 
begins to perceive the secret of this effedt on the 
senses. Everything is planned for harmony and pro- 
portion. The pointed arch, of which all Moslem 
architects were enamored,is shown in the main door- 
way and in the principal windows of the front. This 
doorway rises almost to the full height of the tomb 
and on each side are recessed windows, with beauti- 
fully pointed tops. 

All the angles and spandrels of the building are 
inlaid with precious stones as well as with texts from 
the Koran. In the center of the building is an oc- 
tagonal chamber, twenty-four feet on each side, with 
various rooms around it devoted to the imperial 
tombs. A dome, fifty-eight feet in diameter, rises 
to a height of eighty feet, beneath which, inclosed 
by a trellis-work screen of white marble, are the 
tombs of the Favorite of the Palace and of the great 
Emperor. The Emperor, with a touch of the Ori- 
ental despot, has made his tomb a little larger than 
that of the woman whom he honored in this unique 
fashion. The delicate tracery in marble, so charac- 
teristic of Mogul work of the sixteenth century, is 
seen here at its best, as well as the inlays of the lotus 
and other flowers in sapphire, turquoise and other 
stones. The efFedl is highly decorative and at the 
same time chaste and subdued. A feature which im- 
presses every visitor is the remarkable trellis work 
in marble. A solid slab of marble, about six feet by 
four and about two inches in thickness, is used as a 
panel. This is cut out into many designs that re- 
mind one of fine old lace. These panels abound in 
every important room of the Taj. 

[lis] 



The Critic in the Orient 

The Taj has suffered little serious damage from 
the conquerors who successively despoiled it of its 
wealth of precious stones. The places of these jew- 
els have been supplied with imitations which are 
almost as effedive as the originals. In a few instances 
the marble has been chipped or broken, but, through 
the generosity of Lord Curzon, these blemishes have 
been removed, and the whole stru6lure exists to-day 
almost as it did three hundred years ago when Ak- 
bar's grandson completed it and found it good. 

The Taj should be seen by day and again at 
nightfall. In the full glare of the brilliant Indian 
sun the dome and the minarets stand out with extra- 
ordinary clearness, yet the lightness and buoyancy 
of the dome is not injured by the fierce light. Seen 
at sundown the Taj is at its best. All the lines are 
softened; the minarets and the perfed: dome give an 
appearance of lightness and grace not of this world; 
they suggest the cloud-capped towers and gorgeous 
palaces of the poet's vision. As the afterglow fades, 
the Taj takes on an air of mystery and aloofness; 
the perfe6t lines melt into one another and the whole 
strudlure is blurred as though it were seen in a dream. 
Then one bids adieu to the world's perfe61: building, 
thankful that he has been given the opportunity to 
enjoy the greatest marvel of archite6lure,which leaves 
on the mind the same impression left by splendid 
music or the notes of a great singer. Words are 
poor to describe things like the Taj, which become 
our cherished possessions and may be recalled to 
cheer hours of despondency or grief. 



[1 1 6] 



Delhi and Its 

Ancient Mohammedan 
Ruins 



DELHI, the ancient Mogul capital of India, is 
an interesting city, not only because of its 
present-day life but because it contains so 
many memorials of the Mohammedan conquest of 
the country. The ancient Moslem emperors were 
men who did things. Above all else they were build- 
ers, who construdled tombs, palaces and mosques 
that have survived for nearly four hundred years. 
They builded for all time, rearing massive walls of 
masonry that the most powerful British guns during 
the mutiny were unable to batter down. They built 
their own tombs in such enduring fashion that we 
may look upon them to-day as they were when these 
despots completed them. Akbar, Shah Jehan, Hu- 
mayan and Aurungzeb each ereded scores of build- 
ings that have survived the ravages of time and the 
more destructive work of greedy mercenaries in 
time of war. In and around Delhi are scores of these 
tombs in various stages of decay. Those which have 
been cared for are splendid specimens of the best 
architecture of the sixteenth century. 

Indian brick is the cheapest building material in 
the world. The Indian brick of to-day looks very 
much like the cheapest brick used in American cit- 
ies to fill in the inside of walls; but the brick made 
in the time of Shah Jehan and Humayan and used 
by them was a flat tile brick, hard as stone, set in 



["7] 



The Critic in the Orient 

mortar that has resisted the elements for over three 
hundred years. When the roofs of these Moslem 
tombs and palaces fell in, then the work of disinte- 
gration followed rapidly. The plaster scaled off the 
front and sides, and the rows on rows of brick were 
exposed; but it is astonishing that these massive 
walls have not crumbled to dust in all these years. 
In most cases the imposing arched doorways of red 
sandstone have survived. These doorways, beauti- 
fully arched, may be seen on both sides of the road 
leading out of Delhi to the old city, eleven miles 
distant, which was the capital of the Mogul emperors 
until Aurungzeb moved it to Delhi. In a radius of 
fifteen miles from Delhi tombs and palaces that cost 
hundreds of millions of rupees were built by these 
Moslem despots and their viceroys. Most of them 
are now in ruins, but from the top of the Kutab 
Minar one may count a score of tombs with their 
domes and cupolas still intad. Into these tombs 
was poured much of the treasure wrung from the 
poverty-stricken Hindoo tillers of the soil. 

Few sights in this world are more impressive than 
this birdseye view of the remains of the Mogul em- 
perors who ruled northern India for over three cen- 
turies. In one of the poorest and the most densely 
populated countries of the world these despots reared 
marvels of archite6ture which have amazed modern 
experts. They accomplished these wonders in stone 
mainly because, with power of life and death, they 
were able to impress thousands of coolies and force 
them to rear the walls of their palaces and tombs. 
Building materials were very cheap, so that most of 
the treasure expended by these rulers went into the 
elaborate ornamentation of walls and ceiHngs with 
precious stones and carved ivory and marble. No 
description that I have ever read gives any adequate 

[1 1 8] 



Delhi and Its Ancient Ruins 

idea of the number and the massiveness of these 
remains of bygone imperial splendor, and this mag- 
nificence is made more impressive by contrast with 
the squalid poverty of the common people-the till- 
ers of the soil, the drawers of water, who live in 
wretched huts, with earthen floors, no windows and 
no comforts. These dwellings are crowded together 
in small villages; the family cow or goat occupies a 
part of the dwelling, a small fire gives warmth only 
to one standing diredlly over it, and the smoke pours 
out the open door or filters through holes in the 
thatched roof. 

As the native lived three hundred years ago so 
does he live to-day. He uses kerosene instead of the 
old nut or fish oil, but that is almost the only change. 
In the cultivation of the soil and in all kinds of man- 
ufacture the same methods are in use now as when Ak- 
bar wrested North Indiafrom its Hindoo rulers. The 
same crude bullock carts carry produce to Delhi, 
with wheels that have felloes a foot thick and only 
four spokes. Many of these wheels have no tires. In 
some cases camels supply the place of bullocks as 
beasts of burden, especially in the dry country north 
of Delhi. The coolie draws water from the wells for 
irrigation just as his ancestors did three centuries 
ago. He uses bullocks on an arastra that turns over 
a big wheel with a chain of buckets. On small farms 
this work is done by men. All the processes of irri- 
gation are ancient and cumbersome and would not 
be tolerated for a day in any land where labor is 
valuable. 

Delhi is very rich in memorials of the Mogul 
conquerors. Near the Lahore gate is the palace, one 
of the noblest remains of the Mohammedan period. 
A vaulted arcade leads to the outer court, at one end 
of which is a splendid band gallery, with a dado of 

["9] 



The Critic in the Orient 

red sandstone, finely carved. On the farther side is 
the Dwan-i-'Am or Hall of Public Audience, with 
noble arches and columns, at the back of which, in 
a raised recess, the emperor sat on his peacock 
throne, formed of two peacocks, with bodies and 
wings of solid gold inlaid with rubies, diamonds and 
emeralds. Over it was a canopy of gold supported 
by twelve pillars, all richly ornamented. This mag- 
nificent work was taken away by Nadir Pasha. The 
palace contains many other beautiful rooms, among 
which may be mentioned the royal apartments, with 
a marble channel in the floor, through which rose- 
water flowed to the queen's dressing-room and bath. 

The most notable mosque in Delhi is the Jama 
Mashid, built of red sandstone and white marble. 
It has a noble entrance and a great quadrangle, three 
hundred and twenty-five feet square, with a fountain 
in the center. In a pavilion in one corner are relics 
of Mohammed, shown with great apparent reverence 
to the skeptical tourist. Near by is the KalarMas- 
jid or Black Mosque, built in the style of the early 
Arabian architedture. 

Eleven miles from Delhi are many tombs of the 
Mogul emperors, including the Ku tab Minar or great 
column of red sandstone, with a fine mosque near at 
hand. Kutab was a viceroy when he began this splen- 
did column, two hundred and thirty-eight feet high, 
with a base diameter of forty-seven feet three inches. 
The first three stories are of red sandstone and the 
two upper stories are faced with white marble. The 
summit, which is reached by three hundred and 
seventy-nine steps, gives a superb view of the sur- 
rounding country, with its many fine Moslem tombs. 

On the way to the Kutab Minar a number of 
fine Mohammedan tombs are passed, chief of which 
is the tomb of Emperor Humayan, one of the great- 

[1 20] 



Delhi and Its Ancient Ruins 

est of the Moslem builders. Of all the buildings 
that I saw in India this approaches most closely in 
beauty the incomparable Taj Mahal. Of red sand- 
stone, with white marble in relief, its windows are 
recessed and the lower doors filled in with stone and 
marble lattice work of great beauty. The tomb is an 
od:agon and in the central chamber is the great em- 
peror's cenotaph of plain white marble. Not far away 
are the shrines and tombs of many Mohammedan 
emperors and saints. 

Delhi saw some of the fiercest fighting during the 
mutiny. The rebellious natives drove the Europeans 
out of the city, slaughtering those who were unable 
to escape. Thousands of mutineers also flocked to 
Delhi from Lucknow, Cawnpore and other places. 
General Bernard, in command of the English troops 
that came from Simla, attacked the mutineers on 
June sixth and gained an important vidory, as it 
gave the British possession of "The Ridge," a lofty 
outcropping of ancient rock, which was admirably 
designed for defense and for operations against the 
city. Troops were posted all along the Ridge and 
in Hindoo Rao's house, a massive building belong- 
ing to a loyal native. This building was the center 
of many fierce engagements, but it was not until 
September that enough troops were colleded to make 
it safe to assault Delhi. Brigadier-General John 
Nicholson had arrived from the Punjab and urged 
immediate attack on the city. Nicholson was the 
greatest man the mutiny produced. Tall, magnetic, 
dominating, he enforced his will upon every one. 
Even Lord Roberts, who was then a young subal- 
tern and not easily impressed by rank or achieve- 
ment, records that he never spoke to Nicholson 
without feeling the man's enormous will power and 
energy. Finally, on September thirteenth, the Brit- 

[121] 



The Critic in the Orient 
ish guns having made breaches in the city walls, two 
forces (one under Nicholson, the other under Col- 
onel Herbert) stormed the place. The Kabul gate 
was soon taken, but the defense of the Lahore gate 
proved more stubborn. The soldiers wavered under 
the deadly fire, when Nicholson rushed forward to 
lead them. His great height made him a target and 
he fell, shot through the body. A whole week of 
severe fighti^ng followed before every portion of Del- 
hi was captured. Nicholson died three days after 
the British secured complete control of the city. His 
death was mourned as greatly as the death of Sir 
Henry Lawrence at Lucknow. 

The Kashmir, Kabul and Lahore gates at Delhi 
are interesting because they were the scenes of many 
ads of heroism during the mutiny. On the Ridge 
a massive but ugly stone memorial has been eredled 
to those who fell in the mutiny. The position is 
fine but the monument, like all the other memorials 
of the mutiny, is not impressive because of its poor 
design. Other interesting objeds which recall inci- 
dents in this great struggle against the Sepoys are 
suitably inscribed. 



[122] 



Scenes in 

Bombay When the King 

Arrived 



THE ancient city of Bombay, the gateway of 
India and the largest commercial metropolis 
of the empire, was in festival garb because 
of the visit of the King and Queen of England. Fully 
four hundred thousand people came in from the sur- 
rounding country to see their rulers from over the 
sea and to enjoy the novel spedacle of illuminated 
buildings, decorative arches, military processions and 
fireworks. Hence Bombay was seen at its best in 
its strange mixture of races and costumes. In this 
resped it is more Oriental and more pidluresque than 
Singapore. 

The first thing that impresses a stranger is the 
number, size and beauty of the public buildings. 
The Town Hall looks not unlike many American 
city structures— as it is classic, with Doric pillars and 
an imposing flight of steps; but nearly all the other 
buildings are of Indian architedlure, with cupolas 
and domes, recessed windows and massive, pointed 
gateways. They are built of a dark stone, and the 
walls (three and four feet in thickness) seem des- 
tined to last forever. The rooms are from sixteen to 
twenty feet in height; above the tall doors and win- 
dows are transoms; the floors are of mosaic or stone; 
everything about the buildings appears designed to 
endure. The streets are very wide and the sidewalks 
are arranged under colonnades in front of the build- 

[123] 



The Critic in the Orient 

ingSj so that one may walk an entire block without 
coming out into the fierce Indian sunshine. 

All the main streets converge into the Apollo 
Bunder, a splendid driveway like the Maidan in Cal- 
cutta. It sweeps around the sea wall and if any breeze 
is stirring in Bombay one may get it here at night- 
fall. From six o'clock to eight thirty or nine o'clock 
all Bombay turns out for a drive on the Apollo 
Bunder. The line of fine carriages and motor cars 
is continuous for miles, going out the Esplanade to 
Queen's road, which runs for five miles to Malabar 
head, the favorite residence place of the wealthy for- 
eign colony. What will astonish any one accustomed 
to Calcutta and other East Indian cities is the large 
representation of Parsee families in this evening 
dress parade. Two-thirds of the finest equipages be- 
long to the Parsees, who are very richly dressed in 
silks and adorned with fortunes in diamonds, rubies 
and other precious stones. Here and there may be 
distinguished rich Hindoos or Mohammedans out 
for an airing. The women of the latter sed: are con- 
cealed behind the carriage covers, but the Hindoo 
and Parsee women show their faces, their jewelry 
and their beautiful costumes with evident pleasure. 
Nearly all these women wear fortunes in diamonds 
in their ears or in bracelets on their arms. In no 
dress parade in any other city have I noted so many 
large diamonds, rubies and emeralds as in this pro- 
cession of carriages in Bombay. 

V Another thing that impresses the stranger in 
Bombay is the sympathy and the good feeling that 
seems to exist between the leading Europeans of 
the city and the prominent natives. This is in great 
contrast to the exclusiveness that marks the Briton 
in other East Indian cities. Here the President and 
a majority of the members of the Municipal Coun- 

[124] 



Bombay When the King Arrived 

cil are Parsees; while a number of Hindoos and Mo- 
hammedans are represented. When the King and 
Queen of England were received, the address of wel- 
come was read by the Parsee President of the Coun- 
cil, while a bouquet was presented to the Queen by 
the President's wife, dressed in her graceful sari or 
robe of ecru silk, edged with a black border, heavy 
with ornamental gold work. This mingling of the 
races in civic life is due to the domination of the 
Parsee element, which came over to Bombay from 
Persia three hundred years ago, when driven from 
their old homes by Moslem intolerance. Here these 
people, who strongly resemble the Jews in their 
fondness for trade and their skill in finance, have 
amassed imperial fortunes. The richest of these Par- 
see bankers and merchants. Sir Jamsetjee Jeejee- 
bhoy, left much of his great fortune to charity. He 
founded a university, schools and hospitals and his 
name figures on a dozen fine buildings. Other prom- 
inent Parsee families are the Sassoons and Jehangirs. 
^ Yet, despite their wealth and their association 
with Europeans, the Parsees have kept themselves 
unspotted from the world. They do not recognize 
any mingling of their blood with the foreigner. A 
Parsee who marries a European woman must accept 
virtual expatriation, while the wife (although she may 
bear him children) is never allowed any of the priv- 
ileges of a native woman in this life and when she 
dies her body cannot be consigned to the Parsee 
burial place. She is always an alien and nothing that 
she can do is able to break down this racial wall 
that separates her from her husband's people. The 
marriage of Parsee women to foreigners is praftlcally 
unknown. The Parsee wears a distinftive costume. 
The men dress in white linen or pongee trousers, 
with coat of dark woolen or alpaca; they like foreign 



The Critic in the Orient 

shirts and collars, but their headgear is the same as 
that used by the refugees from Persia over three 
hundred years ago. One cap is of lacquered papier- 
mache in the form of a cow's hoof inverted. Another 
is a round cap of gray cloth, finely made, worn over 
a skull cap of velvet or embroidered cloth, which is 
worn indoors. The women wear the sari or robe, 
which consists of one piece of silk or brocade, with 
an embroidered band. This garment is draped around 
the body and brought up over the head, covering 
the right ear. They all wear shoes and stockings. 

The Parsees are all well educated and most of 
them possess unusual refinement. So strong is the 
pride of race among them that they do not tolerate 
any mendicancy among their own people. Their 
charitable associations care for the few Parsees who 
are unable to make a living, so that their paupers 
never make any claim upon the municipal govern- 
ment for aid. They also boast that none of their 
women may be found among the denizens of the red- 
light distridl. Most of the educated Parsees speak 
English, French and German, besides Gugerati (the 
native dialed) and most of them read and write Eng- 
lish, Gugerati and Urdu, which is the written form 
of Hindustani. Yet the Parsees are genuine Orien- 
tals. They sit on chairs, but most of their houses 
are scantily furnished. They are remarkably fond of 
sweets, fruits and nuts. They seem insensible to the 
surroundings of their homes, many living in crowded 
streets and up many flights of stairs. In their homes 
all their treasures are kept in the family safe. If you 
are fortunate enough to be received in one of these 
Parsee homes you will be amazed at the wealth in 
jewelry and personal ornaments which are possessed 
even by families of modest fortune. A Parsee woman 
of this class will have invested five thousand dol- 

[126] 




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Bombay When the King Arrived 

lars in jewelry, much of which she will wear on fes- 
tive occasions. 

^ Many of the big shipping and cotton merchants 
of Bombay are Parsees and they also control much 
of the banking of the city. It was due largely to the 
liberality of the Parsees that the city of Bombay was 
able to present to the King a memorial in gold 
and silver that cost seventeen thousand rupees, or 
over five thousand five hundred dollars in American 
money. This reception to the King and Queen when 
they landed at Bombay on their way to Delhi Dur- 
bar was very typical of the life of the city. Remark- 
able preparations had been made; a series of arches 
spanned the principal streets, all designed in native 
style. At the end of the Apollo Bunder was erected 
a pretty, white pavilion that looked like a miniature 
Taj, while a splendid avenue, lined with pillars, led 
up to the great amphitheater, in front of which, under 
an ornate pavilion, were the golden thrones of the 
King and Queen. This amphitheater was reserved 
for all the European and native notables, as well 
as the Maharajahs and chiefs from the neighboring 
States. 

\ After the reception to the royal party came a 
parade through the principal streets and when this 
was concluded all restridions were relaxed and the 
populace and the visitors from surrounding towns 
gave themselves up to an evening of enjoyment. 
The buildings were illuminated, some with white 
and others with red eledtric lights, while many large 
strudlures were lighted by little oil lamps, in a cup 
or glass. The main streets were filled with long lines 
of carriages, crowded with richly dressed natives and 
Europeans, although the natives outnumbered the 
foreigners by one hundred to one. Never in my life 
have I seen so many valuable jewels as on this night, 

[127] 



The Critic in the Orient 

when I roamed about the streets for two hours, en- 
joying this Oriental holiday. At times I would stop 
and sit on one of the stands and watch the crowd 
flow by in a steady stream. Walking by the side of 
a Parsee millionaire and his richly dressed family 
would pass a Hindoo woman of low caste, one of the 
street sweepers, in dirty rags, but loaded down on 
ankles and arms by heavy silver bangles and painted 
in the center of the forehead with her caste mark. 
She was followed by a poverty-stricken Moham- 
medan leading a little boy, stark naked, while a girl 
with brilliant cap held the boy's hand. A naked 
Tamil, with only a dirty loin cloth, brushed elbows 
with three Parsee girls, beautifully dressed. And so 
this purely democratic human tide flowed on for 
hours, rich and poor showing a childlike pleasure in 
the street decorations and the variegated crowd. And 
in the midst of all this turmoil native parties from 
out of town squatted on the deserted tiers of seats, 
ate their suppers with relish and then calmly com- 
posed themselves to sleep, wrapped in their robes, 
as though they were in the privacy of their own 
homes. It was a spedacle such as could be seen only 
in an Oriental city with a people who live in public 
with the placid unconsciousness of animals. 



[128] 



Religion and 
Customs of the Bombay 

Parsees 



THE Parsees of Bombay-a mere handful of 
exiles among millions of aliens— have so ex- 
erted their power as to change the life of a 
great city. Proscribed and persecuted, they have 
developed so powerfully their aptitude for commer- 
cial life that they represent the wealth of Bombay. 
Living up to the tenets of their creed, they have 
given far more liberally to charity and education than 
any other race. Some idea of the resped: in which 
the Parsee is held may be gained from the fa6t that 
customs officers never search the baggage of one of 
these people; they take the Parsee's word that he 
has no dutiable goods. The commercial success and 
the high level of private life among the Parsees is 
due diredly to their religion, which was founded by 
Zoroaster in ancient Persia three thousand years ago. 
As Max-Miiller has well said, if Darius had over- 
thrown Alexander of Greece,the modern world would 
probably have inherited the faith of Zoroaster, which 
does not differ in most of its essentials from the 
creed of Christ. 

N The popular idea of a Parsee is that he worships 
the sun. This is a misconception, due probably to 
the fad: that the Parsee when saying his prayers al- 
ways faces the sun or, in default of this, prays before 
a sacred fire in his temples; but he does not worship 
the sun, nor any gods or idols. His temples are bare. 



[129] 



The Critic in the Orient 
only the sacred fire of sandalwood burning in one 
corner. The Parsee recognizes an overruling god, 
Ahura-Mazda, the creator of the universe; he be- 
lieves that Nature with its remarkable laws could not 
have come into being without a great first cause. 
But he believes that the universe created by Ahura- 
Mazda was invaded by a spirit of evil, Angra-Main- 
yush, which invites men to wicked deeds, falsehood 
and ignorance. Over against this evil spirit is the 
good spirit, Spenta-Mainyush, which represents God 
and stands for truth, goodness and knowledge. The 
incarnation of the evil spirit is known as Aherman, 
who corresponds to the Christian devil. 

The whole Parsee creed is summed up in three 
words, which correspond to good thoughts, good 
words and good deeds. If one carries out in his life 
this creed, then his good thoughts, good words and 
good deeds will be his intercessors on the great bridge 
that leads the spirit from death to the gates of para- 
dise. If his evil deeds and thoughts and words over- 
balance the good, then he goes straight down to the 
place of darkness and torment. If his good and evil 
deeds and thoughts exadly balance, then he passes 
into a kind of purgatory. 

\ Fire, water and earth are all sacred to the Par- 
see; but fire represents the principle of creation and 
hence is most sacred. To him fire is the most per- 
fect symbol of deity because of its purity, brightness 
and incorruptibility. The sacred fire that burns con- 
stantly in the Parsee temples is fed with chips of 
sandalwood. Prayer with the Parsee is obligatory, 
but it need not be said in the fire temple; the Par- 
see may pray to the sun or moon, the mountains or 
the sea. His prayer is first repentance for any evil 
thoughts or deeds and then for strength to lead a 
life of righteousness, charity and good deeds. 

[130] 



Customs of the Bombay Parsees 

\ The most remarkable result of the Parsee relig- 
ion is seen in the education of children. This is 
made a religious duty, and negledl of it entails ter- 
rible penalties— for the parents are responsible for 
the offenses of the badly-educated child, just as they 
share in the merit for good deeds performed by their 
children. It is the duty of a good Parsee not only 
to educate his own children but to do all in his power 
to help in general education. Hence the large bene- 
factions that rich Parsees have made to found insti- 
tutions for the education of the poor. Disobedience 
of children is one of the worst sins. The Parsees are 
also taught to observe sanitary laws, to bathe fre- 
quently, to take all measures to prevent the spread 
of contagion. Cleanliness is one of the chief virtues. 
To keep the earth pure the Parsee is enjoined to 
cultivate it. He is also admonished to drink spar- 
ingly of wine and not to sell it to any one who uses 
liquor to excess. 

. The Parsee creed urges the believer to help the 
community in which he lives and to give freely to 
charity. Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, the richest Par- 
see Bombay has known, set aside a fund of four 
million seven hundred and forty-three thousand 
rupees for charity and benevolence among all the 
people of his city, regardless of race or creed. The 
Parsee gives liberally to charity on the occasion of 
weddings or of deaths. The charity includes reliev- 
ing the poor, helping a man to marry and aiding 
poor children to secure an education. The influence 
of the Parsee religion upon the literature and life of 
the people is very marked. There is no room for 
atheism, agnosticism or materialism. Faith in the 
existence of God and in the immortality of the soul 
is the corner-stone of the creed, but the Parsee 
spends no money and no effort in proselyting others. 

[131] 



The Critic in the Orient 

' Marriage is encouraged by the Parsee religion, 
because it encourages a virtuous and religious life. 
The marriage ceremony is peculiar. It is always per- 
formed in a large pavilion, whatever the wealth of 
the couple. In the case of the rich many invitations 
are issued and a fine wedding feast is spread. On the 
day set for the wedding, the bride and groom and 
the invited guests assemble in the pavilion. The 
bride as well as the groom is dressed in white. When 
the time comes for the ceremony the couple sit in 
chairs facing each other and a sheet is held up be- 
tween them by friends, so that they cannot see each 
other. Then two priests begin intoning the marriage 
service. After several prayers a cord is wound around 
the two chairs seven times and the chairs are also 
bound together with a strip of cloth. More prayers 
and exhortations follow, both priests showering rice 
upon the couple. Finally the sheet is withdrawn, 
they and their chairs are placed side by side, each is 
given a cocoanut to hold that is bound to the other 
by a string, emblematic of the plenty that may bless 
the new home, and they are declared man and wife. 
Then they sign a document certifying that they have 
been united according to the Parsee ritual and wit- 
nesses sign their names. 

\ Far stranger than the wedding customs of the 
Parsees are their burial rites. They believe that 
neither fire, earth nor water must be polluted by 
contadl with a dead body, so neither burial nor cre- 
mation is permitted. Instead, they expose their 
dead to vultures which strip the flesh from the 
bones within an hour. This occurs in conical places, 
called towers of silence, which are shut off from 
human gaze. The Bombay towers of silence are on 
Malabar head, a beautiful residence distrid over- 
looking the city. Here, in a fine garden planted to 

[132] 



Customs of the Bombay Parsees 

many varieties of trees and shrubs, are five circular 
towers, each about twenty feet high, made of brick, 
covered with plaster. 

While you are admiring the flowers and trees a 
funeral enters the gates. The body is carried by four 
professional bearers and is followed by two priests 
and the relatives and friends. All the mourners are 
clothed in white. They walk two by two, no matter 
how distant may be the house of death, each couple 
holding a handkerchief as a symbol of their union in 
sorrow. When the procession reaches the top of the 
hill the mourners diverge and take seats in the house 
of prayer, where the sacred fire is burning, or they 
seat themselves in the beautiful garden for meditation 
and prayer. The priests deliver the body to the two 
corpse bearers, who throw open the great iron door 
and enter with the body. The floor of the tower is of 
iron grating, arranged in three circles-the outer for 
men, the next for women and the inner for children. 
As the bearers lay the body down, they strip off^ the 
shroud. Then the iron door closes with a clang. 
This is the signal for a score of vultures to swoop 
down upon the body. No human eye can see this 
spedacle, but the imagination of the visitor pi6lures 
it in all its horror. Within a few minutes the gorged 
vultures begin flapping their way to the top of the 
tower, where they roost on the outer rim, 

\ The bones of the corpse are allowed to remain 
for several days exposed to the fierce sun. Then 
they are thrown into a great central well, where the 
climate soon converts them into dust. This is washed 
by the rains into underground wells. Charcoal in 
these wells serves to filter the rain water before it 
enters the ground. Thus do the Parsees preserve 
even the earth from contamination by the ashes of 
the dead. No expense is spared by the Parsees in 

[133] 



The Critic in the Orient 

the construdion of these towers of silence, which are 
always placed on the tops of hills. According to the 
testimony of some of the ablest medical men of 
England and America, who have examined these 
burial grounds, the Parsee method of disposing of 
the dead is the most sanitary that has ever been de- 
vised. It avoids even the fumes that are given off 
in cremation of the dead. It is also cheap and abso- 
lutely democratic, as the bones of the rich and poor 
mingle at last in the well of the tower of silence. 

There is nothing offensive to European taste in 
the towers of silence except the vultures. These dis- 
gusting birds, like the Indian crow, are protected 
because they are admirable scavengers. The Parsees 
see nothing offensive in exposing their dead to these 
birds nor apparently does it shock them that alien 
hands should bare the bodies of their beloved dead; 
but to a foreigner both these aspeds of Parsee bur- 
ial are repellant and no argument has any weight to 
countera6l this sentiment. 

Many sensational accounts of these Parsee bur- 
ial rites have been printed. Nearly every writer lays 
stress on the fad that pieces of the dead bodies are 
dropped by the vultures within the grounds or in 
the streets outside. This is an absurdity, as the 
vulture never rises on the wing with any carrion- 
he eats it on the spot and he will not leave until 
he is gorged to repletion. An effort was made sev- 
eral years ago to remove these towers of silence on 
Malabar hill because of complaints that fragments 
of corpses were found in the neighborhood. When 
two competent medical experts investigated the 
matter they reported that there was no foundation 
for the complaints. So the towers have remained 
and thousands of Parsees have been borne to them 
for the last rites of their creed. 

[134] 




PLATE XLI 

One of the Main Gates to Government 

House, Calcutta. This Gate is of Beautiful Proportions 

and Has a Fine Lion. Government House is 

Situated in a Fine Park of Six Acres 







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PLATE XLIII 
The Great Burning Ghat at Benares. 
Here Are Four Funeral Pyres Arranged for Burning, the 
Heads of the Corpses May Be Detected Among the 
Wood. The Pyre in the Middle Foreground is 
Partly Burned. Relatives Watch the Crema- 
tion From the Temple Above 




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PLATE XLIX 

Detail of Carving in the Jasmine Tower, Agra. 

This View Gives a Good Idea of the Wonderful Work 

in Marble Carving and the Inlaying of Precious 

Stones, Which Makes This Little Pavilion 

a Rival of the Taj 




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PLATE LIII 
Kutab Minar, the Arch and the Iron Pillar, near Delhi. 
The Arch Formed Part of a Mosque built by Kutab, a Viceroy, 
in 1 193 A. D. The Pillar Stood in the Mosque and is of 
Wrought Iron, Twenty-three Feet High. The Monu- 
ment is Two Hundred and Thirty-eight Feet High 
With Three Hundred and Seventy-nine Steps 




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EGYPT, THE HOME 

OF HIEROGLYPHS, TOMBS 

AND MUMMIES 



Picturesque 

Oriental Life as Seen in 

Cairo 



THE first impression of Cairo is bewildering. 
None of the Oriental cities east of Port Said 
is at all like it in appearance or in street life. 
The color, the life, the piduresqueness, the noises, 
all these are distindlive. Kyoto, Manila, Hongkong, 
Singapore, Rangoon, Calcutta, Bombay and Co- 
lombo-each has marked traits that differentiate it 
from all other cities, but several have marked like- 
nesses. Cairo differs from all these in having no 
traits in common with any of them. It stands alone 
as the most kaleidoscopic of cities, the most bizarre 
in its mingling of the Orient and the Occident. 

Ismail Pasha, who loved to ape the customs of 
the foreigner, made a deliberate attempt to convert 
Cairo into a second Paris, by cutting great avenues 
through the narrow, squalid streets of the old city, 
but Ismail simply transformed a certain quarter of 
the place and spoiled its native charader. What he 
could not do, fortunately, was to rob the Egyptian 
of his piduresqueness or make the chief city of 
Egypt other than a great colle6tion of Oriental bazars 
and outdoor coffee shops, as full of the spirit of the 
East as the camel or the Bedouin of the desert. 

The ride from Port Said to Cairo on the train, 
which consumes four hours, is interesting mainly as 
a revelation of what the Nile means to these people, 
who without its life-giving water would be unable to 



[^37] 



The Critic in the Orient 

grow enough to live on. With abundant irrigation 
this Nile delta is one of the garden spots of the 
earth. 

The villages that we pass remind one somewhat 
of old Indian villages on the fringe of the desert in 
California and Arizona— the same walls of sun-baked 
adobe; the roofs of any refuse from tree pruning; 
the goats and chickens on terms of intimacy with the 
single living-room. But the people are not of the 
Western world. Dressed in voluminous black or blue 
cotton robes, which are pulled up over their heads 
to protect them from the keen wind of winter, they 
belong to the land as absolutely as the tawny, dust- 
colored camel. The dress of the women appears to 
differ very little from that of the men, but always the 
women gather a loose fold of their dress and bring 
it over the head, thus partially concealing the face. 
Men, women and children, all in bare feet, squat in 
the sand or sit hunched up against the sunny side 
of their houses. Beyond any other Orientals I have 
seen, these Egyptians have the capacity for unlim- 
ited loafing under circumstances that would drive an 
American insane in a few hours. Flies swarm over 
them; passing donkeys or camels powder them with 
dust; the fierce sun beats down on their heads; but 
all these things they accept philosophically as an inev- 
itable part of life, as something decreed by fate which 
it would be useless and senseless to change. 

The first walk down the Street of the Camel in 
Cairo is one not soon forgotten. Before you are clear 
of the hotel steps an Arab in a sweater and loose 
skirt, something like the Malay sarong, rushes up 
and shouts: "The latest NewYork Herald; just came 
this morning!" Although you tell him "no" and 
shake your head, he follows you for half a block. 
Meanwhile you are badgered by dealers in scarabs, 

[138] 



Oriental Life as Seen in Cairo 

beads, stamps, postal cards, silver shawls and various 
curios, who dog your heels, and, when you finally 
lose your temper, retaliate by shouting: "Yankee!" 
through their noses. These street peddlers are won- 
derfully keen judges of nationality and they manage 
to make life a burden to the American tourist by 
their unwearied and smiling persistence. This is due 
in great part to the foolish liberality of American 
travelers, who are inclined to accept the first price 
oflTered, although with an Egyptian or an Arab this 
is usually twice or three times what he finally agrees 
to take. 

Custom and habit probably blunt one's sensibil- 
ities in time, but this constant annoyance by peddlers 
detrads much from the pleasure of any stroll through 
Cairo streets. To the new arrival everything is novel 
and attractive. The main avenues are wide, well paved 
and lined with spacious sidewalks, but here the Euro- 
pean touch ends. After passing some fine shops, 
their windows filled with costly goods from all parts 
of Egypt and the Soudan, one comes upon one of the 
great cafes that form a distinctive feature of Cairo 
street life. Here the sidewalk is half filled with small 
tables, about which are grouped Egyptians and for- 
eigners drinking the sweet Turkish coffee that is 
served here at all hours of the day. 

Many of these Egyptians are in European dress, 
their swarthy faces and the red fez alone showing 
their nationality. The young men are remarkably 
handsome, with fine, regular features, large, brilliant 
black eyes and straight, heavy eyebrows that fre- 
quently meet over the nose. Their faces beam with 
good nature and they evidently regard the frequent 
enjoyment of coffee and cigarettes as among the real 
pleasures of life. But the older men all show traces 
of this life of ease and self-indulgence. It is seldom 

[139] 



The Critic in the Orient 

that one sees a man beyond fifty with a strong face. 
The Egyptian over forty loses his fine figure, he lays 
on abundant flesh, his jowl is heavy and his whole 
face suggests satiety and the loss of that pleasure in 
mere existence that makes the youth so attradive. 

X Walking down this main artery of Cairo life one 
sees on the left a large park surrounded by a high 
iron fence. This is the Esbekiyeh Gardens, which 
cover twenty acres, and are planted to many choice 
trees and shrubs. They contain cafes, a restaurant 
and a theater, and on several evenings in the week 
military and Egyptian bands alternate in playing 
foreign music. Beyond the gardens is an imposing 
opera house, with a small square in front, ornamented 
with an impressive equestrian statue of old Ibrahim 
Pasha, one of the few good fighters that Egypt has 
produced. From the opera house radiate many 
streets, some leading to the new Europeanized 
quarters, with noble residences and great apartment 
houses; others taking one diredlly to the bazars and 
narrow streets that give a good idea of Cairo as it 
existed before the foreigner came to change its life. 
Although the modern tram car clangs its way 
through these native streets, it is about the only for- 
eign touch that can be seen. Everything else is dis- 
tinctively Oriental. It is difficult to give any ade- 
quate idea of the narrowness of these streets or of the 
amount of life that is crowded into them. As in many 
cities of India, all the work of the shops goes on in 
plain view from the street. The shops themselves 
are mere cubicles, from eight to ten feet wide and 
seldom more than from six to eight feet deep. In 
certain streets the makers of shoes and slippers are 
massed in solid rows; then come the workers in brass 
and metals; then the jewelers, and following these 
may be dealers in shawls and in curios of various 

[140] 



Oriental Life as Seen in Cairo 
kinds. The native shopkeeper sits cross-legged 
amid his stock and, although he shows great keen- 
ness in getting you to examine his wares, he never 
reveals any haste in closing a bargain. 

Shopping in this native quarter and in the great 
Muski bazar that adjoins it is a constant source of 
amusement to the foreign woman who has a fond- 
ness for bargaining. These Arabs and Egyptians 
never exped one to give more than half what is de- 
manded, except in the case of a few large shops in 
which the price is marked. If one of the silver shawls 
made at Assiut attracts a lady's attention and the 
polite shopkeeper demands five pounds sterling, she 
may safely offer him two pounds, and then, after 
haggling for a half hour, she will probably become the 
possessor of the shawl for two pounds ten shillings. 
Of one thing the traveler may be sure: he will never 
get any article from an Egyptian on which the shop- 
keeper cannot make a small profit. 

The Muski bazar is about a mile long and, al- 
though many European shops line it, the street still 
retains its Oriental attractiveness. Branching off from 
it are many narrow streets crowded with shops on 
both sides. Here may be seen the real life of Old 
Cairo, unhampered by any foreign innovations. The 
street is not more than twelve feet wide and above 
the first floor of the houses projeding latticed win- 
dows and open balconies reduce this width to three 
or four feet. Looking up one sees only a narrow slit 
of blue sky, against which are outlined several tiers 
of latticed windows. From these the harem women 
look down upon the street life in which they can 
have no real part. Peeping over the balconies may 
be seen black eyes that gleam above the yashmak or 
Oriental veil worn by the poorer classes. This veil 
covers the face almost to the eyes and it is held in 

[hi] 



The Critic in the Orient 

place by a curious bit of bamboo that comes down 
over the forehead to the nose. The women of the 
better class do not wear this ugly yashmak, but con- 
tent themselves with a white silk veil that is stretched 
across the lower part of the face, leaving the eyes 
and a part of the nose uncovered. 

No visit to Cairo is complete without a sight of 
Old Cairo, with its bazars. This is a quarter of the 
city that remains as it was in the days of the Caliphs. 
It is inhabited mainly by Copts and among the mean 
houses, built of sun-dried bricks, may be traced part 
of the old Roman wall that encircled this suburb, 
then known as Babylon. The houses are mainly of 
two or three stories, but the streets are so narrow 
that two people on opposite sides may easily join 
hands by leaning out of their windows. Many of the 
antique doors of oak, studded with great wrought- 
iron nails, still remain. Here is the old church of 
St. Sergius, which is said to antedate the Moslem 
conquest. In the ancient crypt the Virgin Mary and 
the Child are said to have sought shelter after their 
flight into Egypt. 

,Near by is the island of Roda, which is note- 
worthy for the legend that here the infant Moses was 
found by Pharaoh's daughter. The visitor crosses a 
narrow arm of the Nile by a crude ferry and then 
walks through a quaint old garden to a wall that 
overlooks the Nile and the Pyramids. This wall 
marks the spot, according to local tradition, where 
Moses was taken from the bulrushes. The bul- 
rushes are no more because they have been dredged 
out, but the place has the look of extreme age and 
the garden contains many curious trees. 



[H2] 



Among the 

Ruins of Luxor and 

Karnak 



I UXOR, the ancient city of Upper Egypt, which 
may be reached by a night train ride from 
^ Cairo, is the center of the most interesting 
ruins on the Nile. The city itself has been built 
around the splendid temple of Luxor, founded by 
Amenophis III, but altered and extensively rebuilt 
by Rameses II. From the Nile the colonnade of this 
temple is a beautiful spedacle, as the huge columns 
are in perfedt preservation. Big tourist hotels make 
up most of the other buildings. The town boasts a 
good water front, which is generally lined in the 
winter season with tourist steamers. The view across 
the Nile is fine, as it includes the lofty Libyan range 
of mountains, in whose flanks were cut the tombs of 
the Pharaohs. Here, in two or three days, one may 
study the ruins of Luxor, Karnak and Thebes- 
names that the historian still conjures with. 

All the Egyptian temples were built on one gen- 
eral plan, like the mosques of North India, and 
Luxor does not differ from the others, except that it 
surpasses them all in the beauty of its colonnaded 
pillars. Seven double columns, about fifty-two feet 
high, with lotus capitals, support a massive archi- 
trave, while beyond them are double columns on 
three sides of a great court. This temple of Luxor 
was originally built by Amenophis III of the eight- 
eenth dynasty in honor of Ammon, the greatest of 

[H3] 



The Critic in the Orient 

Egyptian gods, his wife and their son, the moon- 
god Khons. The successor of this monarch erased 
the name of Ammon and made other changes, but 
Seti I restored Ammon's name, and then came Ram- 
eses II, the builder who never wearied in rearing 
huge temples and in carving colossal figures of him- 
self. 

Rameses added a colonnaded court in front ot 
the temple, built an enormous pylon, with obelisks 
and colossal statues that celebrate his own greatness, 
and erased the cartouches of the original builder, 
substituting his own and thus claiming credit for the 
eredion of the whole temple. Were the spirit of the 
great Rameses allowed to return to earth and reani- 
mate the mummy that now forms the most interest- 
ing exhibit in the Cairo Museum, how great would 
be his humiliation to know that his ingenious devices 
to appropriate the credit of other men's work have 
been exposed? In nearly all the remains of Upper 
Egypt, Rameses figures as the sole builder, but the 
cunning of modern archaeologists has stripped him 
of this credit and has revealed him as the greatest 
of royal charlatans. 

The general plan of the Luxor temple is repeated 
at Karnak and all other places in Egypt. The pylon, 
two towers of massive masonry, formed the entrance 
to the temple, the door being in the middle. The 
towers of the pylon resemble truncated pyramids 
and, as they were formed of large stones, they fre- 
quently survived when all other parts of the temple 
fell into ruins. The surfaces of the pylon afforded 
space for reliefs and inscriptions, telling of the glo- 
ries of the king who reared the temple. In most 
cases obelisks and colossal statues of the royal builder 
were placed in front of the pylon. From the pylon 
one enters the great open court, with covered colon- 

[H4] 



Ruins at Luxor and Karnak 

nades at right and left. This court was the gathering 
place of the people on all big festivals, and in the 
center stood the great altar. Back of this court, on a 
terrace a few feet higher, was the vestibule of the 
temple upheld by columns, the front row of which 
was balustraded. Behind this was the great hypostyle 
hall, extending the whole width of the building, with 
five aisles, the two outer ones being lower than the 
others. The roof of the central aisle is upheld by 
papyrus columns with calyx capitals, while that of 
the other aisles is supported by papyrus columns 
with bud capitals. Behind this hall is the inner sanc- 
tuary, containing the image of the god in a sacred 
boat. Around the sanduary were grouped various 
chambers for the storage of the priests* vestments 
and for the use of watchmen and other attendants. 

In the Luxor temple the surface of the pylon is 
devoted to a record of the achievements in war of 
Rameses II, the monarch who finally revised the 
temple and put his seal on it. Behind the pylon is 
the great court of Rameses, entirely surrounded by 
two rows of seventy-four columns, with papyrus bud 
capitals and smooth shafts. Then comes a colonnade 
of seven double columns, fifty-two feet high, with 
calyx capitals; a second court, that of Amenophis III, 
with double rows of columns on three sides; the 
vestibule of the temple, two chapels, the birth-room 
of Amenophis and several other chambers. 

Each monarch who reared a temple to his chosen 
deity devoted much space to statues of himself, with 
grandiloquent accounts in hieroglyphs of his exploits 
in war and peace and of the many peoples who paid 
him tribute. Rameses appears to have had most of 
the evil traits of the arbitrary despot. With unlim- 
ited men and material he was engaged during the 
greater part of his long reign in ereding colossal 

[H5] 



The Critic in the Orient 

stnidhires which were designed to perpetuate in 
enduring stone the record of his achievements. But 
Time has dealt Rameses some staggering blows. 
His tomb at Thebes, which was planned to preserve 
his mummy throughout the ages, fell in and is the 
only one of the tombs of the kings that cannot be 
shown. The mummy of this ablest and proudest of 
the Pharaohs is now on exhibition at the Cairo Mu- 
seum with a score of others and excites the ribald 
comment of the Cook's tourist, who drops his"h's" 
and knows nothing of Egyptology. Yet the mummy 
of Rameses is by far the most interesting of those 
shown at the museum because the head and face are 
so essentially modern. The other rulers of Egypt 
were plainly Orientals, but this man, with the high- 
bridged,sensitive nose, the long upper lip, the strong 
chin and the powerful forehead, might have stepped 
out of the political life of any of the great European 
nations during the last century. 

The impressiveness of the temple of Luxor de- 
pends mainly upon the rows of columns, nearly sixty 
feet in height, which give one a vivid idea of the 
majesty of Egyptian architedlure in its best estate. 
These columns show few traces of the destroying 
hand of time, although they were carved from soft 
limestone. Probably the escape of this temple from 
the ruin that befell Karnak and Thebes was due 
mainly to its sheltered position and also to the fad 
that a Coptic church and the houses of peasants were 
built among the columns. The refuse that aided to 
preserve these remains of Ancient Egyptian archi- 
ted:ure was fully twenty feet deep when the work of 
excavation was begun. Hence Luxor satisfies the eye 
in the perfed: arrangement of the columns and in the 
massiveness of the work. Here also on the pylon 
and the walls of the court may be seen some beauti- 

[146] 




The Great Hypostyle Hall at Kamak.^ 

This Hall is in the Temple of Ammon, and is One 

of the Most Impressive in All Egypt. Originally 

There Were One Hundred and Thirty-four 

Columns, Arranged in Sixteen Rows 



Ruins at Luxor and Karnak 
ful reliefs and inscriptions which depidt scenes in the 
campaigns of Rameses II against the Hittites, sacri- 
ficial processions and hymns to the gods. 

\ From ancient Luxor to Karnak, a distance of a 
mile and one-half, the way was marked in the time 
of the Pharaohs by a double row of small sphinxes, 
many of which still remain in a half-ruined condition. 
This avenue leads to the small temple of Khons, the 
moon-god, made noteworthy by a beautiful pylon. 
This pylon is one hundred and four feet long, thirty- 
three feet wide and sixty feet high and is covered 
with inscriptions and reliefs. This small temple 
serves as an introdudtion to the great temple of 
Ammon, the chief glory of Karnak, to which most 
of the Pharaohs contributed. This temple is difficult 
to describe, as it covers several acres and is a mass 
of gigantic masonry, full of majesty even in its ruin. 
What it was in the days of its builders, with its vast 
courts lined with beautiful designs in brilliant colors, 
the imagination fails to conceive. Its greatest fea- 
tures are the main pylon (three hundred and seventy 
feet wide and one hundred and forty-two and one- 
half feet high), the great hypostyle hall of Seti I and 
Rameses II, the festival temple of Thotmes III and 
the obelisk of Queen Hatasu. From the pylon a 
superb view may be gained of the ruins of Karnak. 

\ The hypostyle hall is justly ranked among the 
wonders of the world, as it is no less than three hun- 
dred and thirty-eight feet in breadth by one hundred 
and seventy feet in depth and it is estimated that the 
great church of Notre Dame in Paris could be set 
down in this hall. Sixteen rows of columns— one 
hundred and thirty-four in all-support the roof. 
Looking down the two central rows of columns 
toward the sanduary, one gets some idea of the effed 
of this colossal architedure when the pillars were 

['47] 



The Critic in the Orient 

all perfeft and the fierce sunshine of ancient Egypt 
brought out their barbaric wealth of gold and bril- 
liant colors. 

The walls of this immense hall are covered with 
pidures in relief depiding the victories of Seti and 
Rameses over the Libyans and the people of Pales- 
tine. These designs represent the two monarchs as 
performing prodigies of valor on the field of battle 
and then bringing the trophies of war as an offering 
to the gods. The festal hall of Thotmes III is 
made noteworthy by twenty unique columns ar- 
ranged in two rows. The Temple of Karnak was 
made beautiful by two fine obelisks of pink granite 
from Assuan, ereded by Queen Hatasu. One is in 
fragments, but the other rises one hundred and one- 
half feet from amid a ruined colonnade. It is the 
loftiest obelisk known with the single exception of 
that in front of the Lateran in Rome, which is taller 
by only three and one-half feet. The inscription 
records that it was made in seven months. 

The impression left by the ruins of Karnak is 
bewildering. The modern mind has great difficulty 
in conceiving how any monarch, no matter how great 
his resources, could spend years in eredting these 
huge strudures in honor of his gods. Here are scores 
of colossal statues of Rameses, Seti and Amenophis, 
each of which required six months to carve from a 
single slab of red or black granite. Here are hun- 
dreds of columns of from forty to sixty feet high, 
covered from capital to base with richly carved hier- 
oglyphs. Here are splendid halls, larger than any- 
thing known in our day, which were pidure galleries 
in stone, blazing with gold, red, purple and other 
colors. And here are obelisks that have preserved 
through all these centuries the story of their dedi- 
cation. 

[148] 



Ruins at Luxor and Karnak 
\ The mind Is staggered by so great a mass of work, 
representing untold misery of thousands of wretched 
slaves brought from all parts of the then known 
world. These slaves were made to work under the 
terrible Egyptian sun; if they were overcome by the 
heat and stopped for a moment's rest their bare 
backs felt the cruel lash of the overseer; if they fell 
under the heat and the burden they were dragged 
out and their bodies thrown to the vultures and the 
jackals. So, while we stand in amazement before 
these relics of the enormous aftivity of a people who 
have passed away, we cannot fail to note that these 
huge stones were cemented with the blood and tears 
of the bond slave, and that if they could find a voice 
they would tell of unthinkable atrocities which they 
witnessed in those old days, before brotherly love 
came into the world. 



[149] 



Tombs of 

The Kings at Ancient 

Thebes 



THE Greeks and Romans who went up the 
Nile as far as the "hundred -gated" city of 
Thebes declared that the Tombs of the 
Kings, cut in the limestone sides of the Libyan range 
of mountains, were among the wonders of the world. 
The tourist of to-day will confirm this early impres- 
sion, for in Egypt nothing gives one a more vivid 
idea of the enormous pains taken by the Pharaohs to 
preserve their dead from desecration than do these 
tombs. Here for several miles in the flanks of these 
mountains-sterile,desolate beyond any region that I 
have ever seen— are scattered the rock-hewn tombs 
of the monarchs who carried the arms of Egypt to 
all parts of the known world of their day. Like their 
temples, the Egyptians built their tombs after a 
uniform plan— the only variation was in the arrange- 
ment of the minor chambers and in the inscriptions 
which told of the history of the king whose mummy 
reposed in the vault. 

Seven miles across the river the Pharaohs chose 
the site of their tombs. Imagination could not con- 
ceive a greater abomination of desolation than the 
rocky mountainside in which these tombs are carved; 
but fortunes were lavished on the construdtibn of 
these resting places of the dead. Historians and 
travelers have told of the great city which grew up 
about the tombs of the Egyptian kings- the temples, 



[150] 



Tombs of Kings at Ancient Thebes 

the homes of priests and the huge settlements of 
thousands of workmen who spent years in the labo- 
rious carving and decoration of these burial places. 
But to-day nothing remains of these cities, and of 
the temples only a few columns, pillars and broken 
statues bear witness to their former grandeur. Yet 
the tombs have resisted the destroying hand of the 
centuries, and the walls of several of them actually 
retain the brilliant colors laid on by the painters over 
four thousand years ago. When you go down the 
roughly -hewn steps into the mortuary chambers, 
carved out of the solid rock, it is borne in upon you 
that here time has stood still; that during all the 
ages that have seen the rise of Christianity and the 
growth of empires greater than Thebes ever dreamed 
of, the mummies of these Pharaohs reposed here 
undisturbed. Now by the aid of skilfully arranged 
eledlric lights you may descend into most of these 
tombs, marvel at the beauty of the decorative inscrip- 
tions on the walls, gaze upon the massive granite 
sarcophagi in which the mummies were placed, and 
get a genuine taste of the antiquity that you have 
read about but never fully realized before. This is 
the service of the tombs of the kings— the adual 
turning back of the centuries so that one feels the 
touch of the ancient days as vividly as he feels the 
hot, dust-laden, oppressive air of the mausoleum. 

\ The excursion from Luxor to the tombs of the 
kings and the Colossi of Memnon, not far away, is 
a hard day's trip. The tourist crosses the Nile in a 
small boat and takes a donkey or a carriage. The 
road leads along a large canal, passing the remains 
of the great temple of Seti I at Kurna, and thence 
winds around through two desert valleys into a gorge 
lined on both sides with naked, sun-baked rocks 
that give back the heat like the open doors of a 



The Critic in the Orient 

furnace. Bare of any scrap of verdure, desolate be- 
yond expression, these rocky walls that shut in this 
gorge form a fitting introdu6lion to the tombs of the 
kings. The road finally turns to the left and enters 
a small valley, encircled by huge rocks, cut by ra- 
vines. Here one may see in the sides of the moun- 
tain wall the first of the rock-hewn tombs, which 
happens to be that of Rameses IV. One enters the 
large gateway and passes down an ancient staircase 
cut in the solid rock, at an angle of forty-five de- 
grees. Three corridors and an ante-room, all carved 
out of rock, lead to the main chamber, which con- 
tains the mammoth granite sarcophagus of the king 
(ten feet long, eight feet high and seven feet wide), 
beautifully decorated with inscriptions. Four other 
rooms follow, the walls of each being covered with 
inscriptions. Recesses are found in the main hall for 
the storage of the furniture of the dead and in sev- 
eral of the other rooms. 

\ The theory of the Egyptians in the arrangement 
of these tombs was that the dead king, guided by 
the great sun-god, voyaged through the underworld 
every night in a boat. Hence he must have careful 
guidance in regard to his route. This was furnished 
by elaborate extrafts from two sacred books of the 
Egyptians. One was entitled 'The Book of Him Who 
Is in the Underworld and the other was the Book nf 
the Portals, 

The walls of these tombs reveal extrads from the 
sacred books in great variety, but all designed to 
serve as a guide to the dead kings. The best tombs 
are those of Amenophis II, Rameses III, Seti I and 
ThotmesIII. They are all of similar design but the 
tomb of Seti I (discovered by the Italian savant, 
Belzoni) is finer than any of the others. It includes 
fourteen rooms, most of which are richly adorned 



Tombs of Kings at Ancient Thebes 

with inscriptions and designs from the sacred books. 
The sculptures on the walls are executed with great 
skill and the decorations of the ceilings show much 
artistic taste. In the tenth room are many curious 
decorations, the ceiHng, which is finely vaulted, being 
covered with astronomical figures and lists of stars 
and constellations. From this room an incline leads 
to the mummy shaft. The mummy of Seti I is in 
the Cairo Museum, while the fine alabaster sarcoph- 
agus is in the Soane Museum in London. The tomb 
of Amenophis II is noteworthy as the only one which 
contains the royal mummy. In a crypt with blue 
ceiling, spangled with yellow stars and with yellow 
walls to represent papyrus, is the great sandstone 
sarcophagus of the king. Under a strong eledric 
light is shown the mummy-shaped coffin with the 
body of the king, its arms crossed and the funeral 
garlands still resting in the case. The effediveness 
of this mummy makes one regret that the others 
have been removed to the Cairo Museum, instead of 
being restored to their original places in these tombs. 
Most of these royal mummies were removed to a 
shaft at Deir-el-Bahri to save them from desecration 
by the invading Persians, but when the mummies 
were found it would have been wise to replace them 
in these tombs rather than to group them, as was 
done, in the Cairo Museum. One or two mummies 
in that museum would have been as effedive as two 
dozen. 

^ Not far from these tombs is the fine temple of 
Queen Hatasu at Deir-el-Bahri. This queen was the 
sister and wife of KingThotmes III, and for a part 
of his reign was co-regent. The temple, which was 
left unfinished, was completed by Rameses II. A 
short ride from this temple brings one to the Ram- 
essium, the large temple (which is badly preserved) 

[153] 



The Critic in the Orient 

ereded by Rameses II and dedicated to the god 
Ammon. The pylon is ruined, but one can still de- 
cipher some of the inscriptions that tell of Rameses* 
campaign against the Hittites. The first court is a 
mass of ruined masonry, but it contains fragments of 
a colossal statue of Rameses, the largest ever found in 
Egypt. It probably measured fifty-seven and one- 
third feet in height, as the various parts show that 
it was twenty-two and one-half feet from shoulder 
to shoulder. The colossal head of another statue of 
Rameses was found near by. The great hall had 
many fine columns, of which eighteen are still stand- 
ing. These columns are very impressive and give 
one some idea of the majesty of the temple when it 
was complete. Not far away are the tombs of the 
queens, including the fine mausoleum of the consort 
of Rameses II, part of whose name was Mi-an-Mut. 
\ A half mile from the Ramessium brings one to 
the Colossi of Memnon, the two huge seated figures 
of stone, which were long included among the seven 
wonders of the world. These figures were statues of 
King Amenophis III and were placed in front of a 
great temple that he built at this place; but time has 
dealt hardly with the temple, as scarcely a trace of it 
remains. The figures with the pedestals are about 
sixty-five feet high and, as they are on the level plain 
near the banks of the Nile, they can be seen from a 
great distance. Though carved from hard sandstone 
these figures have suffered severely from the ele- 
ments, so that the faces bear little trace of human 
features; still they are impressive from their mere 
size and from the fa6t that they have come down to 
us across the centuries with so little change. 

The southern statue is in the best preservation, 
but the northern one is of greatest interest because 
for ages it was believed to give forth musical notes 

[154] 



Tombs of Kings at Ancient Thebes 

when the first rays of the rising sun fell on its lips. 
The Greeks called it the Statue of Memnon, and 
invented the fable that Memnon, who was slain at 
Troy by Achilles, appeared on the Nile as a stone 
image and every morning greeted his mother (Eos) 
with a song. So many good observers vouched for 
these musical notes at sunrise that the phenomenon 
must be accepted as an historical fad. The Romans 
invented the legend that when these sounds occurred 
the god was angry. Hence the emperor, Septimius 
Severus, apparently to propitiate the god, made some 
restorations in the upper portion of the statue, 
whereupon the mysterious musical sounds ceased. 
Some modern experts in physics have deduced the 
theory that this statue, carved from hard, resonant 
stone, really gave forth sounds when warmed up by 
the early sun after the heavy dews of night. Similar 
sounds have been observed elsewhere, due to the 
splitting off of very small particles of stone by sud- 
den expansion. Whatever the cause of these mys- 
terious sounds, the speaking statue has served as an 
inspiration to many poets. 



['55] 



Sailing Down 

The Nile on a Small 

Steamer 



FEW pleasure trips are more enjoyable than a 
steamer ride down the Nile from Luxor to 
Cairo. My plans did not permit an extensive 
Nile trip, so I went up the Nile by rail and came 
down by the Amenartas, one of Cook's small boats. 
For one who has the leisure the best scheme is to 
take one of Cook's express boats and make the round 
trip to Assouan from Cairo. The Egypt and the 
Arabia are two luxurious steamers specially arranged 
for the comfort of tourists. 

\ The Nile at Luxor is about a half-mile wide at 
extreme low water in December, although the marks 
on the bank show that it spreads over several miles 
of flat land when the heavy rains come in June and 
July. It is as muddy as the Missouri or the San 
Joaquin, but the natives drink this water, refusing to 
have it filtered. They claim, and probably with rea- 
son, that this Nile water is very nutritious. The 
Egyptian fellah or peasant seldom enjoys a hot meal. 
He chews parched Indian corn and sugar cane, and 
eats a curious bread made of coarse flour and water. 
Despite this monotonous diet the native is a model 
of physical vigor, with teeth which are as white and 
perfect as those of a Pueblo Indian. 

All around Luxor are evidences of the tremen- 
dous force of the Nile waters when in flood. At 
various headlands near the city the banks of the Nile 



[156] 



Sailing Down the Nile on Steamer 

have been stoned up with solid walls, so that these 
may receive the full sweep of the flood waters. The 
great dam at Assouan, perhaps the finest bit of en- 
gineering work in the world, holds up the main cur- 
rent of the Nile and prevents the destrudive floods 
which in the old days frequently swept away all the 
soil of the fellah's little farm. This dam has now 
been increased twelve feet in height, so that no water 
pours over the top. 

The farmers in Egypt irrigate in the same way 
as the ryots of India. They lay off a field into small 
redtangular patches, with a ridge around each to keep 
the irrigation water in it. These redangles make the 
fields look like huge checker-boards. Plowing is 
done exadly as in the time of Cleopatra. A forked 
stick, often not shod with iron, serves as a plow, to 
which are frequently harnessed a camel and a bul- 
lock by a heavy, unwieldy yoke. When these two 
unequally yoked animals move across the field, agri- 
culture in the Orient is seen at its best. Unlike the 
Japanese, the Egyptian women do not work in the 
fields. Their labors seem to be limited to carrying 
water in large jars on their heads and to washing 
clothes in the dirty Nile water. The most common 
sight along the river is that of two women, with their 
single cotton garment gathered up above their knees, 
filling the water jars or rinsing out clothes in water 
that is thick and yellow with dirt. 
\ The steamer Amenartas started down the river 
at two in the afternoon. The current was strong and 
the little steamer easily made fifteen miles an hour. 
Now began a series of exquisite views of river life, 
which changed every minute and saved the voyage 
from monotony. The first thing that impresses the 
stranger who is new to Egypt is the number and 
variety of the shadoufs for bringing the Nile water 

[^57] 



The Critic in the Orient 

to the fields. These consist of three platforms, each 
equipped with two upright posts of date palm trunks, 
with a crossbar. From this crossbar depends a well 
sweep, with a heavy weight at one end and a tin or 
wooden bucket at the other. One man at the level 
of the river scoops up a bucket of water and lifts it 
to the height of his head, pouring it into a small 
basin of earth. The second man fills his bucket from 
this basin and in turn delivers it to the third man, 
who is about six feet above him. The third man 
raises the water to the height of his head and pours 
it into a ditch which carries it upon the land. The 
heavy weights on the shadouf help to raise the water, 
but the labor of lifting this water all day is strenuous. 
The shadouf men work with only small loin cloths, 
and occasionally one of these fellows in a sheltered 
hole toils stark naked. 

Despite the fadt that their work is as heavy as 
any done in Egypt, they receive the wretched pit- 
tance of two piasters or ten cents a day, out of which 
they must spend two and one-half cents a day for 
food. The shadouf is as old as history, and the meth- 
ods in use for raising this Nile water are the same 
to-day that they were in the earliest dawn of re- 
corded history. 

I As in India, there is a great dearth of farmhouses 
in these rich lands. The peasants are herded in 
squalid villages, the mud huts jammed close together, 
and the whole place overrun with goats, donkeys, 
pigs, chickens and pigeons. The houses are the crud- 
est huts, with no window and no roof. 

Life in these villages along the Nile is as primi- 
tive as it is among the Pueblo Indians of Arizona 
and New Mexico. Although their religion admon- 
ishes them to wash before prayers, these peasants 
appear to pay little heed to such rites. Men, wom- 

[■S8] 



Sailing Down the Nile on Steamer 

en and children are extremely dirty, and it is unusual 
to find anyone with good eyes. Inflammation of the 
eyelids is the most common complaint and this dis- 
ease is aggravated by the fa6t that the natives make 
no effort to drive away the flies that fasten upon the 
sore eyes of their little children. This is due to the 
common superstition that it brings ill luck to brush 
oflF flies. At every small station where the steamer 
stopped to land native passengers and freight a score 
of villagers would be lined up, each afflidted with 
some eye complaint, and all swarming with small 
black flies. 

At only a few towns along the Nile from Luxor 
to Cairo were there any houses which looked like 
comfortable homes. The great majority of the houses 
were of sun-dried brick, and these were often in a 
ruinous condition. Yet with their framework of 
graceful date palms, these squalid villages would de- 
light the eye of an artist. For nearly the whole dis- 
tance the west side of the Nile is marked off from 
the desert by the high Libyan mountains, gleaming 
white and yellow in the brilliant sunshine. These 
limestone cliffs were chosen for the tombs of the 
kings at Thebes, and all along the river one could 
make out with a glass frequent tombs carved in the 
steep sides of these hills. The other side of the river 
was flat, with low ranges of hills. At sunrise and at 
sunset the most exquisite colors transformed the 
country into a veritable fairyland. The sun sank 
behind bands of purple and amethyst, and his last 
rays brought out in sharp silhouette the statuesque 
forms of women water-carriers and long lines of laden 
camels moving in ghostly silence along the river 
bank. Very beautiful also were the pictures made 
by the dahabiehs and other native boats, with their 
big lateen sails and with the motley gathering of 

[^59] 



The Critic in the Orient 

natives in the stern. All these boats have enormous 
rudders which rise high out of the water and add 
greatly to the efFediveness of the pidlure as seen 
against the sunset glow. 

The atmosphere along the Nile is wonderfully 
clear, the sky is as blue and lustrous as fine silk, and 
the wind blows up clouds in fantastic shapes, which 
add greatly to the beauty of the scenery. All day 
the little steamer passes half-ruined villages, embow- 
ered in feathery palms, with camels in the background 
and an occasional bullock straining at the wheel 
which lifts the Nile water on the shadouf. All day 
natives passed along the sky line, some on don- 
keys, others on camels, still others driving in front 
laden animals, whose forms could scarcely be distin- 
guished amid the thick clouds of dust raised by their 
heavy feet. The creak of the shadoufs could be 
heard before we came abreast of the tireless workers. 
\ Seen from the steamer the glamour of the Orient 
was over all this poverty-stricken land, but seen near 
at hand were revealed all the ugly features of dirt, 
disease, hopeless poverty, unending work that yields 
only the coarsest and scantiest food. We passed 
miles on miles of waving fields of sugar cane, with 
great fadlories where this cane was worked up into 
sugar. We passed broad fields of cotton, with fadlo- 
ries near at hand for converting the produd: into 
cloth. Principalities of wheat— great seas of emerald 
green that stood out against a background of sandy 
desert-lined the banks at frequent intervals. But all 
these evidences of the new wealth that scientific irri- 
gation has brought to this ancient valley of the Nile 
means nothing to the Egyptian peasant. These great 
industries are in the hands of native or foreign mil- 
lionaires, who see to it that the wages of the native 
workers are kept down to the lowest level. 

[1 60] 



Before the 

Pyramids and the 

Sphinx 



WINTRY winds in Cairo, which raised clouds 
of dust and sand, prevented me from seeing 
the pyramids until after my return from 
Luxor. Then one still, warm day it was my good 
fortune to see at their best these oldest monuments 
of man's work on this earth. Yet impressive as are 
these great masses of stone rising from barren wastes 
of sand, they did not affed: me so powerfully as the 
ruins of Karnak and the tombs of the Kings of 
Thebes. Three pyramids were constructed at Gizeh 
and four other groups at Sakkara, the site of the an- 
cient city of Memphis. That these pyramids were 
built for the tombs of kings has now been demon- 
strated beyond question, so that the many elaborate 
theories of the religious significance of these monu- 
ments may be dismissed. The ancient city of Mem- 
phis was for centuries the seat of the government of 
Egypt, and the tombs thatmay be seen to-day at Sak- 
kara preceded the rock-hewn tombs at Thebes in 
Upper Egypt. The great antiquity of the tombs at 
Sakkara makes these of importance, although much 
of the work is inferior to that at Thebes. 

The pictures of the pyramids are misleading. 
They give the impression that these great masses of 
stone rise near palm groves and that the Sphinx is 
almost as hugh as the pyramid of Cheops which 
overshadows it In reality, the pyramids are set on a 



[i6i] 



The Critic in the Orient 

sandy plateau,about fifteenfeet high, while the Sphinx 
is pradlically buried in a hollow to the west of the 
great pyramid and can only be seen from one direc- 
tion. When you stand in front of the big pyramid 
you can form no idea of its size, but you know from 
the guide book that it is seven hundred and fifty 
feet long and four hundred and fifty-one feet high. 
The height of each side is five hundred and sixty- 
eight feet, while the angle of the sides is fifty- 
one degrees fifty minutes. These statistics do not 
make much impression on the mind but, when it 
is said that this huge pyramid adually covers 
thirteen acres, the mind begins to grasp the stu- 
pendous size of this great mass of masonry. This 
pyramid to-day is of dirty brown color, but when fin- 
ished it was covered with blocks of white limestone. 

These were removed by various builders and have 
served to ere6t mosques and temples. Had this 
covering remained intad: it would be impossible to 
climb the pyramid of Cheops. From Cairo and the 
Nile, as well as from the desert, the pyramids are an 
impressive sight. Unique in shape and massive as 
the Libyan hills beyond them, they can never be 
forgotten, for they represent more perfedly than any 
other remains in Egypt the control by the early kings 
of unlimited labor and materials. 

It used to be the fashion to sneer at the stones 
told by H erodotus, but the excavations in Egypt dur- 
ing the last thirty years have demonstrated that this 
old Greek traveler was an accurate observer and that 
what he saw may be accepted as faft. He was the 
first to give any detailed description of the pyramids 
and of the enormous work of building them. Hero- 
dotus visited Egypt about 450 B. C, and he related 
that one hundred thousand men were employed for 
three months at one time in building the great pyra- 

[162] 



Before the Pyramids and the Sphinx 

mid of Cheops. The stone was quarried near the 
site of the citadel in Cairo, and ten years were con- 
sumed in constructing a great road across the desert 
to Gizeh by which the stone was transported. The 
remains of this road, formed of massive stone blocks, 
may now be seen near the Sphinx. The construc- 
tion of the big pyramid alone required twenty years. 
The story of Herodotus that one hundred thousand 
men were once employed on this pyramid is plaus- 
ible, according to Flinders-Petrie, as these months 
came during the inundation of the Nile, when there 
was no field work to occupy their time. 

The ascent of the pyramid is an easy task for 
any one in good physical condition and accustomed 
to gymnastic work. Two Bedouins assist you from 
the front while an ancient Sheik is supposed to help 
push you from the rear. In my case the Bedouins 
had a very easy job, while the Sheik enjoyed a sine- 
cure. The stones are about a yard high, and the 
only difficulty of the ascent lies in the straddle which 
must be made to cover these stones. The ascent is 
made on the northeast corner of the pyramid, and 
much help is gained by inequalities in the great slabs 
of limestone which enable one to get a foothold. 
Two rests were made on the upward climb, but we 
came down without any rest, covering the whole trip 
in about fifteen minutes. 

The view from the summit is superb. On two 
sides, the south and west, stretches the sandy desert, 
broken only by the groups of pyramids at Abusir, 
Sakkara and Dashhur, which mark the bounds of the 
ancient city of Memphis. 

\The average tourist has more curiosity about 
the Sphinx than about the pyramids, and here the 
reality is not disappointing. An impressive figure is 
this of a recumbent stone lion one hundred and 

[163] 



The Critic in the Orient 
eighty-seven feet long and sixty-six feet high, with 
a man's head that is full of power and pride. The 
nose is gone and the face is badly scarred, but here 
is the typical Egyptian face, with the fine setting of 
the eyes and the graceful head. 

The journey to the rock tombs of Sakkara and 
the site of ancient Memphis is tedious, as it includes 
a ride across the sandy desert of eighty miles. A 
stop is made at the old house of Mariette, the fam- 
ous French Egyptologist, who uncovered many of 
the finest remains in Memphis. Near by is the Step 
pyramid, the tomb of a king of the fifth dynasty and 
one of the oldest monuments in Egypt. 

Near by are several pyramids and tombs that 
will repay a visit, as each gives some new idea of the 
extraordinary care taken by the ancient Egyptians to 
preserve their dead and to assure them proper guid- 
ance in the land beyond the tomb. 

In one chapel are exquisitely carved mural re- 
liefs, many of which still retain their original colors. 
In these chambers the hot, dry air is like that of the 
desert. A hundred years seem like a day in this 
atmosphere, where nothing changes with the chang- 
ing seasons. Under one's feet is the soft, dry dust 
stirred up by the feet of many tourists, but rain and 
sunshine never penetrate this home of the dead, and 
a century passes without leaving a mark on these 
inscriptions which were chiseled long before the 
children of Israel made their escape from bondage 
in Egypt. It seems incredible that so many mo- 
mentous things should have occurred while in these 
still, warm tombs day followed day without change. 



[164] 




PLATE LVII 

A Typical Street in Old Cairo. 

These Buildings Show the Architedlure of Cairo, 

With a Mosque on the Left With Dome 

and Minaret 








to" •"-=: ' 








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m iS — t"' .U O 






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Cairo, 
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ound 
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PLATE LIX 

Women Water Carriers in Turkish Costume. 

One of These Women is Uncovered, While the 

Other Wears the Yashmak or Face Mask. 

They Carry Large Water Jars on 

Their Heads 




PLATE LX 

The Rameseon at Karnak. 

Six Colossal Statues of Rameses II of Which Three 

Are in Fair Preservation 




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ypical V 
ouses of 
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la Adobe 
Whole 
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<: n 




PLATE LXIII 

The Colossi of Memnon, near Thebes. 

These Gigantic Figures on the West Bank of the 

Nile May Be Seen for Many Miles. They are 

Sixty-five Feet High, and Stood Originally 

in Front of a Temple 




PLATE LXIV 
The Great Sphinx, Showing the Temple 
Underneath. This is the Best View of the Face, 
Which Has a Certain Majesty. The Lion's Fig- 
ure is Sixty-six Feet High and One Hundred 
and Eighty-seven Feet Long 



APPENDIX 



Hints for Travelers 

Some Suggestions That May Save the 

Tourist Time and Money 

FOR a round-the-world trip the best plan is to buy a Cook's ticket 
for six hundred and thirty -nine dollars and ten cents. This pro- 
vides transportation from any place in the United States around the 
world to the starting point. The advantage of a Cook's ticket over 
the tickets of other companies is that this firm has the best organized 
force, with large offices in the big cities and with banks as agencies 
in hundreds of places where you may cash its money orders. This 
is a great convenience as it saves the risk of carrying considerable 
sums of money in lands where thievery is a fine art. Cook's agents 
may be found on arrival by boat or train in all the principal cities 
of a world-tour. These men invariably speak English well, and thus 
they are a god-send when the tourist knows nothing of the language 
or the customs of a strange country. At the offices of Cook and Son 
in all the large Oriental cities one may get accurate information about 
boats and trains and may purchase tickets for side excursions. Some 
of the Oriental offices I found careless in the handling of mail because 
of the employment of native clerks, but this was not general. Cook 
will furnish guides for the leading Oriental tours and in India and 
Egypt these are absolutely necessary, as without them life is made a 
burden by the demands of carriage drivers, hotel servants and beggars. 
Cook will furnish good guides for Japan, but it is unsafe to select 
natives unless you have a guarantee that they know the places usually 
visited and that they speak intelligible English. The pronunciation 
of Japanese differs so vitally from that of English that many Japanese 
who understand and write English well make a hopeless jumble of 
words when they attempt to speak it. Their failure to open their 
mouths or to give emphasis to words renders it extremely difficult 
to understand them. Good foreign hotels may be found in all the 
Japanese cities and even those managed by Japanese are conducted 
in European style. It is a pity that the hotels are not modeled on 
the Japanese style, like the Kanaya Hotel at Nikko, where the 
furniture and the decorations of the rooms are essentially Japanese 
and very artistic. The average charge for room and board in 
Japanese hotels of the first class is four dollars, but some of the 
more pretentious places demand from five to six dollars a day. 



[167] 



Hints for Travelers 

The cost of travel in India is not heavy because of the moder- 
ate scale of prices. Hotels usually charge ten rupees a day for 
board and lodging or about three dollars a day. Carriage hire is 
cheap, especially if you have a party of four to fill one carriage. A 
Victoria, holding four people, may be had morning and afternoon 
for twenty rupees, or an average of about one dollar and seventy- 
five cents a day each. Railway travel is absurdly cheap. Our party 
traveled second-class from Calcutta to Delhi, thence to Bombay, 
Madras and Tuticorin, a distance of about thirty-five hundred miles — 
farther than from New York to San Francisco— for one hundred and 
forty rupees or about forty -five dollars in American money. The 
first-class fare was nearly twice this amount, but no additional com- 
fort would have been secured. We made the trip at low cost 
because a bargain was always made with hotelkeepers and carriage 
drivers. Always make a definite bargain or you will be overcharged. 
A native guide is necessary not only to show you the places of 
interest but to arrange for carriages and to pay tips to servants. 
Secure a Mohammedan guide and you may rest content that you 
will not be cheated. His antipathy to the Hindoo will prevent any 
collusion with servants. A good guide may be had for two rupees a 
day or about sixty-five cents, and he will board himself. 

Murray's Guide books for Japan, China, the Straits Settle- 
ments and India are the most useful. These give the best routes and 
describe all the principal objects of interest. Without such a guide- 
book, one is helpless, as the professional guides frequently omit im- 
portant things which should be seen. It is needless to look for con- 
scientiousness or honesty in the Orient. You will not find them. 

To avoid trouble when hiring carriage or jinrikisha, make a 
definite bargain by the hour or by the trip. This you may do 
through the hotel porter. Then, on your return, if the driver or the 
rickshaw-man demands more, refer the matter to the porter, and 
refuse to pay more than your bargain. If you do not take these pre- 
cautions you will be involved in constant trouble and will be per- 
sistently charged twice what you should pay. Even with these 
precautions, you cannot escape trouble in Singapore, which is cursed 
with the greediest carriage drivers in the world. 

Many travelers purchase Cook's hotel coupons which provide 
for lodging and meals at certain hotels in every large city of the 
Orient. My experience is that it is a mistake to buy these coupons, 
as all the hotel managers speak English or have hall porters who 
understand the language. You gain little by the arrangement, and 
you lose the choice of good rooms, as hotel managers are not partial 
to tourists who carry coupons, since the profit on these is small. 



['68] 



Hints for Travelers 

In Egypt, Cook's tours, which are arranged to suit all tastes, 
are the most convenient. The best plan is to go up the Nile by 
train and to come down by boat. Do not neglect the ride down 
the river. It consumes more time but it is the only way in which 
you can get an idea of the charm of the scenery, the primitive life 
of the people, and the beauty of sunrise and sunset over the desert. 

Above all things, arrange your itinerary carefully before you 
start. Here is where Cook's agent can help you materially, but you 
must not rely upon his advice in regard to steamship lines. He will 
recommend the P. & O. boats, as they are British, but practically 
every tourist who has made the trip will say that the North German 
Lloyd steamers give the best service. Engage your state-room 
several months in advance and pay a deposit, so as to get a receipt 
for the best berth in a certain room. Unless you do this, you will 
have trouble and will probably be forced to sleep in an inside room 
on hot tropical nights. Get a room on star-board or port-side, 
according to the prevailing wind. To be on the windward side 
means comfort and coolness at night. As soon as possible after 
boarding a vessel see the bath steward and select an hour for your 
morning bath. Should you neglect this, you will be forced to rise 
very early or to bathe at night. If you wish certain table com- 
panions see the head steward promptly. If you travel on a P. &0. 
boat, engage an electric fan at the Company's office, as there is a 
rule that you can't hire a fan after you are on board. The North 
German Lloyd furnishes fans, which are a necessity in the tropics. 

There is a regular tariiF for tips on most of the Oriental steam- 
ship lines, graded according to the length of the voyage. You can 
always ascertain what to give to your waiter, room steward, bath 
steward, boot black and deck steward. These tips are always given 
on the last day of the voyage. American tourists are criminally lavish 
in giving tips, with the result that one who adheres to the rules of 
old travelers, is apt to be regarded as niggardly. It is to be noted 
that the richest travelers always conform to the regular schedule of tips. 

In all parts of the Orient it is unsafe to drink the water of the 
country. If you do not relish bottled waters, demand tea ; at any 
rate make sure that the water you drink has been boiled. I found 
hot tea an excellent drink even in the tropics and I was never 
troubled with the complaints that follow drinking unboiled water. 
It is well to make liberal use of the curries and rice which are ex- 
cellent everywhere. These, with fish, eggs and fruit, formed the 
staple of my diet. Never eat melons nor salads made of green 
vegetables; the native methods of fertilizing the soil are fatal to the 
wholesomeness of such things. 



[169] 



Bibliography 

Books Which Help One to Understand 

THE Orient and Its People 

IN this bibliography no attempt has been made to cover the field 
of books about the leading countries of the Orient. The aim has 
been to mention the books which the tourist will find most helpful. 
Guide books are indispensable, but they give the imagination no 
stimulus. It is a positive help to read one or two good descriptive 
accounts of any country before visiting it; in this way one gets an 
idea of comparative values. In these notes I have mentioned only 
the books that are familiar to me and which I have found suggestive. 

JAPAN 

Of all foreigners who have written about Japan, Lafcadio Hearn 
gives one the best idea of the Japanese charafter and of the literature 
that is its expression. Hearn married a Japanese lady, became Pro- 
fessor of English Literature at the Imperial University of Tokio, 
renounced his American citizenship, and professed belief in Bud- 
dhism. He never mastered the Japanese language but he surpassed 
every other foreign student in his ability to make real the singular 
faith of the Japanese in the presence of good and evil spirits and 
the national worship of beauty in nature and art. Hearn' s father 
was Greek and his mother Irish. In mind he was a strange mix- 
ture of a Florentine of the Renaissance and a pagan of the age of 
Pericles. In The West Indies he has given the best estimate of the 
influence of the tropics on the white man, and in Japan : An Inter- 
pretation, In Ghostly Japan, Exotics and Retrospections, and others, 
he has recorded in exquisite literary style his conception of Japanese 
character, myths and folk-legends. His work in this department is 
so fine that no one else ranks with him. He seems to have been 
able to put himself in the place of the cultivated Japanese and to 
interpret the curious national beliefs in good and evil spirits and 
ghosts. He has also made more real than any other foreign writer 
the peculiar position of the Japanese wife. Hearn was a conserva- 
tive, despite his lawless life, and he looked with regret upon the 
transformation of old Japan, wrought by the new desire to European- 
ize the country. He paints with great art the idyllic life of the old 
Samauri and the loyalty of the retainers to their chief. 

[171] 



Bibliography 

Sir Edwin Arnold, who in his old age married a Japanese lady, 
has given excellent pictures of life in Japan in Seas and Lands and 
Japonica. Religions of Japan by W. E. Griffis gives a good idea 
of the various creeds. Mr. GrifEs in The Mikado's Empire also 
furnishes a good description of Japan and the Japanese. 

In Fifty Tears of New Japan, Count Okuma has compiled a 
work that gives a complete survey of Japanese progress during the last 
half century. Among the contributors are many of the leading states- 
men and publicists of Japan. 

Of fiction, the scene of which is laid in Japan, one of the most 
famous stories is Madame Chrysantheme by Pierre Loti, a cynical 
sketch of the Japanese geisha, or professional entertainer. Another 
good story which lays bare the ugly fate that often befalls the geisha, 
is The Lady and Sada San by Frances Little, the author of that 
popular book, The Lady of the Decoration. 

Other books that will be found valuable are Norman, The New 
Japan; Chamberlain, Things Japanese; Treves, The Other Side of 
the Lantern; Murray, Handbook of Japan; Clement, Handbook of 
Modern Japan; D'Autremer, The Japanese Empire; Hartshorne, 
Japan and Her People; Eraser, J Diplomatist's Wife In Japan; 
Lloyd, Everyday Japan; Scidmore, Jinrikisha Days In Japan; 
Knox, Japanese Life In Town and Country; Singleton, Japan, As 
Described By Great Writers; Inouye, Home Life In Tokio. 

MANILA 

The acqusition of the Philippine Islands by the United States 
has led to a great increase of the literature on the islands, especially 
in regard to educational and industrial progress. Among the old 
books that have good sketches of Manila are A Visit to the Philip- 
pine Islands by Sir John Browning. 

For sketches of the city since the American occupation see 
Worcester, The Philippine Islands and Their People; Landor, The 
Gems of the East; Dennis, An Observer in the Philippines; Potter, 
The East To-day and Tomorrow; Moses, Ufiofficial Letters of An 
OfficiaPs Wife; Hamm, Manila and the Philippines; Younghus- 
band. The Philippines and Round About; Stevens, Yesterdays in the 
Philippines; Arnold, The Philippines, the Land of Palm and Pine; 
and LeRoy, Philippine Life in Town and Country. 

HONGKONG 

Good descriptive sketches of Hongkong may be found in Nor- 
man, The Peoples and Politics of the Far East; Des Vcux, A Hand- 
book of Hongkong; Colquhoun, Chi7ia in Transformation; Penfield, 



[172] 



Bibliography 

East of Suez; Treves, The Other Side of the Lantern; Ball, Things 
Chinese; Thomson, The Changing Chinese; Singleton, China As 
Described by Great Writers; and Liddell, China, Its Marvel and 
Mystery. 

SINGAPORE 

Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore, was one of the 
British Empire builders who was very shabbily treated by the English 
government. Unaided, he prevented the Dutch from obtaining ex- 
clusive control over all the waters about Singapore and he was also 
instrumental in retaining Malacca, after the East India Company had 
decided to abandon it. He was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of 
Java after the English wrested the island from the Dutch in 1810. 
His ambition was to make Java *'the center of an Eastern Insular 
Empire," but this project was thwarted by the restoration of Java 
to Holland, The Raffles Museum in Singapore, one of the most 
interesting in the Orient, was his gift. 

Sketches of Singapore may be found in Sir Frank Swettenham's 
British Malaya^ Malay Sketches and The Real Malay; Wright and 
Reed, The Malay Peninsula; Belfield, Handbook of the Federated 
Malay States; Harrison, Illustrated Guide to the Federated Malay 
States; Ireland, The Far Eastern Tropics; Boulger, Life of Sir 
Stamford Raffles; Buckley, Records of Singapore. 

RANGOON 

There is a large literature on Burma, which seems to have ap- 
pealed to British travelers. Among the books that have chapters 
devoted to Rangoon are Cuming, In the Shadow of the Pagoda; 
Bird, Wanderings in Burma; Hart, PiSluresque Burma; Kelly, The 
Silken East; MacMahon, Far Cathay and Farther India; Vincent, 
The Land of the White Elephant; Nisbet, Burma Under British 
Rule and Before; Hall, The Soul of a People and A People at School. 

INDIA 

The literature about India is very extensive, so that only a few 
of the best books may be mentioned here. To the tourist the one 
indispensable book is Murray's Handbook for Travelers in India, 
Ceylon and Burma, which is well provided with maps and plans of 
cities. For general description, among the best works are Malcolm, 
Indian Figures and Problems; Scidmore, Winter India ; Forrest, 
Cities of India; Kipling, From Sea to Sea; Stevens, In India; 
Arnold, India Revisited; Low, A Fision of India (describing the 
journey of the Prince of Wales in 1905-6); Caine, PiSiuresque 
India; Things Seen in India. 



[173] 



Bibliography 

For the history of India, some of the best books are Lane- 
Poole, Me diaval India and The Mogul Emperors; Fanshawe, Delhi, 
Past and Present; McCrindle, Ancient India; Rhys-Davids, British 
India; Roberts, Forty-one Tears in India; Holmes, History of the 
Indian Mutiny; Innes, The Sepoy Revolt; Curzon, Russia in Central 
Asia; Colquhoun, Russia Against India. 

On the religions of India: Rhys-Davids, Buddhism; Warren, 
Buddhism in Translations; Clarke, Ten Great Religions ; Hopkins, 
Religions of India; Arnold, The Light of Asia. 

EGYPT 

Egypt has changed so much during the last twenty years that 
books written before that time are practically obsolete. The daha- 
biyeh is no longer used for Nile travel, except by tourists of means 
and large leisure, since the tourist steamers make the trip up and 
down the Nile in one quarter the time consumed by the old sailing 
vessels. Cairo has been transformed into a European city and even 
Luxor is modernized, with its immense hotels and its big foreign 
winter colony. 

Baedeker's Egypt is the best guide book, but be sure that you 
get the latest edition, as the work is revised every two or three 
years. The introductory essays in this volume on Egyptian history, 
religion, art and Egyptology are well worth careful reading. The 
descriptions of the ruins and the significance of many of the hiero- 
glyphs are helpful. Of general descriptive works on Egypt, some 
of the best are Penfield, Present Day Egypt (l 899) ; Jeremiah Lynch, 
Egyptian Sketches, a book by a San Franciscan which gives a series 
of readable pictures of Cairo and the voyage up the Nile; Holland, 
Things Seen in Egypt. 

Of Egypt, before it was transformed by the British, standard 
works are Lane, Cairo Fifty Tears Ago; Lady DufF-Gordon, Let- 
ters From Egypt (covering the period from 1862 to 1869). Good 
historical works are Lane-Poole, Egypt, and the Story of Cairo; 
Ebers, Egypt, Descriptive, Historical, and Picturesque. 

Of the administration of England in Egypt, the best book is 
Lord Cromer's Modern Egypt. Other works are Milner, England 
in Egypt ; Colvin, The Making of Modern Egypt. The story of 
Gordon's death at Khartoum is well told in Stevens^ With Kitchener 
to Khartoum and Churchill, The River War. 

Several valuable works on Egyptian archeology have been 
written by Maspero and Flinders-Petrie. Maspero's Art in Egypt, 
which is lavishly illustrated, will be valuable as a guide book. Flind- 
ers-Petrie' s Egyptian Decorative Art is worth reading. 



[174] 



Index 



Agra, East Indian city of inter- 
esting features, ill; the Taj 
Mahal, 1 12-116 

Arjmand, favorite wife of Shah 
Jehan, for whom the Taj was 
built, 1 1 2 

Benares, sacred city of the Hin- 
doos, 100-105; bathing ghats 
along the Ganges, 100-102; toll 
levied by priests on all bathers, 
103 ; burning the dead by the 
river banks, 104-105; funeral 
ceremonies, 105 

Bombay, gateway of India, 123- 
134; beauty of public buildings, 
123-124; the Apollo Bunder, 
I 24* importance of the Parsees 
in city life, l 24- 1 26 ; reception 
to King George V, l 27 ; holiday 
street scenes, 128 ; religion and 
customs of the Parsees, 1 29- 
130; wedding ceremonies, 132; 
"Towers of Silence" where 
dead are exposed to vultures, 

133-134 
Buddhism, temples at Nikko, 17; 

greatest temple, the Shwe Da- 
gon Pagoda at Rangoon, 90 ; first 
residence of Buddha at Sarnath, 
near Benares, 100 

Cairo, the capital of Egypt, 137- 
142 ; much Europeanized since 
Ismail's time, 138-139; the 
Street of the Camel, 138-140; 
Esbekiyeh Gardens, 140; shop- 
ping in the great Muski bazar, 
141- Island of Roda, where 
Moses was found, 142* scenesin 
the old native city, 142 

Calcutta, greatest commercial 
port of India, 95-99;former cap- 



ital, 95 ; the Maidan or Esplan- 
ade, 95-96 ; Eden Gardens, 95- 
scene of the Black Hole, 96; 
caste marks, 97 ; scenesin bath- 
ing ghats on the Hoogly, 98- 
native quarter, 98-99 ; botanical 
gardens with great banyan tree, 
99 • Imperial Museum, 99 

Canton, the great business center 
of China, 72-79; exodus of 
people during revolution, 73' 
boat city on the Pearl river, 73- 
74; "hot-foot" boats, 75; in- 
side the ancient walls, 76-77; 
deserted stores on main street, 
76; Buddhist Temple of Hor- 
rors, "j"]'^ great rush of refugees, 
77-78 ; scene of the assassination 
of Tartar general, 78; old Bud- 
dhist water clock, 78 

Cawnpore, scene of the worst mas- 
sacre in the Sepoy mutiny, 109- 
110; fatal mistake of General 
Wheeler, 109; treachery of 
Nana Sahib, 110; butchery of 
women and children, no 

CHATOR,Sir Paul, who made Hong- 
kong a great city, 8 1 

Delhi, ancient Mogul capital of 
India, 1 17-122; tombs of Mos- 
lem emperors, 117-1 1 8; squalor 
of common people, 119; Mogul 
palaces and mosques, 119-120; 
theKutab Minar, 1 20- 121; me- 
morialsof the mutiny, 121-122; 
fighting at Kabul gate, 122 

Egypt, the land of tombs, pyramids 
and mummies, 1 37-164; rail- 
road ride from Port Said, 138; 
features of the country, 138- 
139; Cairo and its pidlurcsque 



[175J 



Index 



life, 138-142; Luxorand Karnak 
ruins of finest temples of ancient 
Egypt, 143-149; Thebes, tomb 
city of the Egyptian Kings, 150- 
155; sailing down the Nile, i 56- 
160; Pyramids and the Sphinx, 
161-164 

Havelock, English General who 
fought his way into Lucknow 
and helped defend the city against 
hordes of mutineers, 108 

HiDEYOsHi, Napoleon of Japan, his 
memory revered, 19; his castle, 

Hongkong, greatest British port in 
the Orient, 65-7 1 ; its fine pub- 
lic buildings and spacious water- 



women asfield hands, 8 • Tokio, 
the pidluresque capital, 10-15; 
Nikko, city of temples, 16-21 • 
Kyoto, the ancient capital, fa- 
mous for gardens and art work, 
22-27' railway travel, 22-23; 
Kobe,28-33' Osaka,chief man- 
ufacturing city, 29 • Inland Sea, 
30; Nagasaki, 30-32; develop, 
mentof sense of beauty, 34-37; 
influence of the garden on artis- 
tic sense, 34-35 • are the Japan- 
ese honest? 28-39* influence of 
Christianity, 41-42' the sam- 
pan, 43; influence of military 
training, 45-46 ' loyalty to coun- 
try, 46-47 



front, 66; splendid shops on Karnak, the greatest temple of 
Queen's road, 67; pidluresque ancient Egypt, 147-149; its 



street crowds, 68; mixture of 
races, 68; night scenes in native 
quarter, 69 ; cable railway to 
the peak, 70 ; costly residences 
on mountain side, 70 • Kowloon 
City, 71 
India, the most interesting country 
of the Orient, 95-104' Cal- 
cutta, most beautiful of Indian 
cities, 95-99 ; Benares, the sa- 
cred city of the Hindoos, 100- 
105 • Lucknow and Cawnpore, 
cities of the mutiny, 1 06-1 10; 
Agra and the Taj Mahal, 1 1 1- 
116; Delhi, the ancient Mogul 
capital and now the British capi- 
tal,! 17-1 22;Bombay,theEuro- 



enormous size, 147 ; itshypostile 
hall, one of the wonders of the 
world, 147-148 -hieroglyphs of 
Seti and Rameses, 1 48 • obelisks 
erected by Queen Hatasu, 148 ; 
colossal statues and columns, 
148; cost in human life, 149 

Kobe, greatest commercial seaport 
of Japan, 2 8-29; its many foreign 
schools, colleges and missions, 28 

Kyoto, ancient Japanese capital, 
22-27 -richlydecoratedtemples, 
24 • satsuma,cloissoneanddama- 
scene work, 24-25; attractive 
shops, 26 ;greatbronzeDaibutsa, 
26; oldest Buddhist temple in 
Japan, 27 



peangateway of India, 123-134; Lawrence, Sir Henry, to whose 



the Parsees and their curious 
customs, 129-134 
Japan, Yokohama, 3 ' aspeft of 
rural life, 4* bull, the beast of 
burden^ 5 ; the jinrikisha, 5 ; 
great courtesy of all classes, 6 ; 



wise precautions the British in 
Lucknow owed their lives during 
the mutiny ; he was killed in the 
early days of the seige, 107. 
Lucknow, scene of the most fa- 
mous siege in the Indian mutiny. 



[.76] 



Index 



1 06- 1 09 ; ruinsof the Residency, 
1 06 ; story ofthesiege, 107-108; 
memorial tabletstoBritishheroes, 
108 

Luxor, with ruins of the finest tem- 
ple in Egypt, 143-146; built by 
Amenophis III* restoredand en- 
larged by Rameses II, 1 43- 1 44; 
plan of the temple, 1 44- 1 45; 
Rameses exposed by Egyptolo- 
gists, 146; temple of Karnak, 
147-149 

Manila, capital of Philippines and 
American naval base in Far East, 
51-62; hospitality of Americans, 
5 2 ; recnforced concrete favorite 
building material, 52; its splen- 
did docks, 52; the Escolta, 52; 
the Bridge of Spain, 53;thecara- 
bao or water buffalo, 53; old 
walled city, 54 ; historical gates, 
54* famous churches, 55; doors 
open to the ambitious Filipino 
youths, 56; influence of Amer- 
ican schools, 56-57; Dr. George 
W. Wright on religious work in 
Philippines, 56-57; sanitary re- 
forms which have made Manila 
healthy port, 5 7 ; work of the 
Constabulary Guard, 5 8 ; scenes 
on the Luneta, 60 ; nipa huts 
of natives, 61-62; fondness of 
people for music, 62; American 
gramophones in native huts, 62 

Nana Sahib, the evil genius of the 
Indian mutiny, who broke faith 
with prisoners at Cawnpore, shot 
themen,andorderedl 25 women 
and children butchered and cast 
into a well, 109 

Nara, seat of oldest temples in 
Japan, 26-27; ^^"^2 deer in 
park, 26 



Nicholson, John, Brigadier-Gen- 
eral, the ablest man the Indian 
mutiny produced, 121 ; he led 
the British march on Delhi and 
fell at the storming of the Lahore 
gate, 122 

Nagasaki, great Japanese seaport, 
30-33; girls coaling steamers, 
31-32; trip to Mogi, 33 

NiKKO, the Japanese city of temples, 
16-21 ; eighth century Buddhist 
temple, 1 7 ; Sacred Red Bridge, 
17; imperial tombs, 17- 19; 
school pilgrimages, 19; famous 
cryptomeria avenue to Imaichi, 
20-21 

Nile, sailing down the, 156-160; 
importance of river to Egypt, 
156; ancient method of irriga- 
tion by shadouf, 157-1 58; poor 
pay for hard work, 158; preva- 
lence of eye diseases, 1 5 9; squalid 
homes of thenatives, 1 6o;beauty 
of views along the Nile, 160 

Osaka, Japan's chief manufaftur- 
ingcity, 29; Hideyoshi's castle, 

Parsees, importance in municipal 
life of Bombay, 129; religion 
thatof Zoroaster, 129-1 30 ;gifts 
by rich Parsee merchants, 131; 
quaint marriage customs, 132; 
towers of silence where dead arc 
exposed, 133-135 

Pyramids, among the oldest human 
work on earth, 161-163; size 
and cost of construction, 162- 
163; ascent of Gizeh, 163; 
features of the Sphinx, 164; 
rock tombs of Sakkara, 1 64 

Raffles, Sir Stamford, the maker 
of Singapore and founder of 
great Malayan museum, 81 



U77] 



Index 



Rangoon, Burma's largest city, 
89-92; elephants piling teak, 
89-90 ; Shwe Dagon Pagoda, 
center of the Buddhist faith in 
Orient, 90-9 1 j splendid decora- 
tion of shrines, 91-92 

Shah Jehan, the greatest builder 
among the Mogul Emperors of 
India, who immortalized his 
name by erecting the Taj Mahal, 
1 12 

Singapore, gateway to the Far 
East, 80-88; humidity of at- 
mosphere, 80; world's largest 
dry dock, 81; Sir Stamford 
Raffles, 81; great mixture of 
races, 81-82; traits of the Malay, 
8 3 ; importance of Chinese, 84- 
85; night scenes in Malay and 
Chinese quarters, 85-87; large 
opium dens, 87; fine botanical 
gardens, 88 

Taj Mahal, the world's most 
beautiful building at Agra, India, 
1 1 l-l 16 ; built by Shah Jehan 
as memorial to favorite wife, 
112; cost in money and human 
life, 1 1 2 jits perfect architecture. 



114; lavish decoration, 115; 
restoration by Lord Curzon, 116 
Thebes, tomb city of the ancient 
Egyptian kings, 1 50- 155- deso- 
late site across the Nile from 
Luxor, 1 50- 1 5 1 ;electric-lighted 
tombs, 1 5 1 ; rock-hewn tomb 
of Rameses IV, 152; tombs of 
other monarchs, 152-153 • only 
one contains royal mummy, 154; 
fine temple of Queen Hatasu, 
153; the Ramessium, with larg- 
est statue found in Egypt, 154' 
Colossi of Memnon, i 54 • why 
one of the statues was musical, 

155 

Tokio, the Japanese capital, 10- 
15; its splendid parks, 11-13- 
1 4 J imperial palace, 1 3 ; tombs 
of six shoguns, 14; night work 
in shops, 1 5 

Wheeler, General, whose confi- 
dence in his native troops, cost 
the lives of all the garrison of 
Cawnpore, 109 

Yokohama, much Europeanized 
Japanese city, 3 ; good tourist 
outfitting point, 4 



[178] 



AND SO ENDS THE CRITIC IN THE ORIENT, CONTAINING 
THE IMPRESSIONS OF GEORGE HAMLIN FITCH ON THE 
FIRST HALF OF HIS TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. PUB- 
LISHED IN BOOK FORM BY PAUL ELDER & COMPANY 
AND SEEN THROUGH THEIR TOMOYE PRESS BY JOHN 
SWART DURING THE MONTH OF APRIL, MCMXIII, IN 
THE CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO 



lUH II I9I3 



